Camp Counselors
by livyroro
Summary: Tris gets a job working as a camp counselor at her old childhood camp, Angel's Lake. Four has been working at this camp for two years under the insistence of his father. It's always been a drag, but when a certain blonde-haired beauty becomes his partner, work becomes very interesting. Includes most of the Dauntless gang.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **Hi and thank you for clicking on my story! I have a few things to mention and then we can get on with the first chapter, I highly suggest you read this as it has important information. I will try to keep my author's notes to a smaller length in the future.

Okay, so here we go. I had the idea for this story on my own, there are a few 'Divergent Summer Camp' stories out there but mine is different because they are counselors, not campers. The idea (not the storyline) was partially inspired by one of my favorite books, Things I Can't Forget by Miranda Kenneally. I didn't copy her storyline at all I just used the idea that they're camp counselors at a camp that they went to when they were little. *I made up the camp name, "Angel's Lake." It may be a real camp somewhere but I don't think there's one outside of Chicago!

This story is going to be fairly long, if I have motivation and you guys like it and support me. But I'm feeling very inspired at the moment and I have a lot of ideas for it. There will be slowly developing Fourtris, and don't worry, they will get together.

Sorry if any characters seem OOC, I try my best.

*I know it doesn't seem very 'campish' at first, but it gets there soon! We just have to get through a bit of dry background first.

* * *

**Chapter 1**

_**Tris **_

Twenty-three dollars. I fan my money out on the dull green carpet of my bedroom, recounting it just to be sure. Two fives, a ten, and three ones. I grab my wallet from where it was resting on the floor, and flip it open. It's empty except for my driver's license, my credit card, my debit card, and a little slip of paper that says I'm a trained life guard.

I double check all the pockets, making sure there are no bills hiding. I shake it upside down, and I get nothing.

I cradle my head in my hands, biting back a sob and rapidly blinking my eyelids to prevent tears from leaking out. I barely had enough money to pay for college this coming fall, and ninety percent of it was my parent's money. How am I supposed to live on twenty-three dollars?

They left both me and my brother, Caleb, a good chunk of money when they died a year ago from a car accident. Their wills had both requested that we put it in the bank immediately under a college fund, and I'm so grateful I did what they said.

They always knew better than me, and they always knew what was right. I wish they were here right now to help me.

During my senior year, I worked all over the town, trying to scrape up the last ten percent of the money I'd need to attend SAIC, or School of the Art Institute of Chicago, in the fall. I'm majoring in photography.

Graduation was a few weeks ago, and since then I haven't had a job. I was working in a small book store run by family friends, and I was making a good amount of money and working a lot of shifts. They closed right after school got out. Financial problems, just like the rest of us.

I applied for many higher paying jobs for college students, and as strange as it was to say that, I am a college student now. I heard back from all of them, but I only got accepted to one, and although it's not the one I wanted the most, it will pay well.

I'm going to be a counselor at a summer camp outside of the city that I used to go to when I was younger. Every summer, my parents would send us off to Angel's Lake, a sleep away camp for kids of all ages that offers a wide range of activities. I haven't been there since I was in middle school, and tomorrow I go back, but not as a camper.

My friend Christina will be driving us up in the early hours of the morning, since I don't have a car. We both applied to it on our own and we both ended up getting the job, and surprising each other with the news. I'm very grateful for it because I would have had to take a city bus, not that there's anything wrong with taking buses, but they bring back memories from when my parents were alive. Instead of driving to downtown Chigaco, we would always bus up on the weekends to see movies and go to arcades.

I don't have much to pack, because they supply the counselors with official shirts and all the other camping materials, but I fill a small bag with a few pairs of shorts, a lot of sports bras, crappy sneakers, socks, junky pants, my toothbrush and paste, and my hair brush.

We'll get the weekends off, so if I need something else I can always go to my apartment on Saturday or Sunday to be prepared for the next week. There will be eight sessions, starting on Monday. Each is a week-long, and I'll be paired up with another counselor to handle a group of girls or boys of different ages.

I set my bag near the door, along with my jacket and my boots, so I'm ready for tomorrow and I don't have to do anything except put on clothes and walk out the door. I eat a quick dinner: instant noodles. I've taken to eating like a college student although I'm technically not in college yet. I try to save money every way I can, and it's helped a lot, because if I ate fancier dinners I wouldn't even have twenty-three dollars right now. I'm close to being broke, but I'm not quite there yet.

But I'll start having a stable income in a week; we work from Monday to Friday and get paid at the end of each session. Tomorrow's only Sunday, but we need a quick preliminary course about being a counselor, and for those who haven't been to the camp before, a quick tour. For the first week, we'll be like assistants to a more experienced counselor, and after that we'll be put in random pairs, so it's two counselors to a group.

I finish eating quickly, and I go into the kitchen and do the dishes. I don't have many dishes, but I'm not going to be here for a week, maybe more, depending on what we do on the weekends, and I want the place to be clean while I'm away.

After the dishes, I do a bit of dusting, and I vacuum the carpeted areas. It's not a large apartment; it only has one bedroom, a bathroom, a kitchen, and a combined dining/living room, so it doesn't take long to get it spotless.

I get ready for bed, even though it's only ten o'clock, I won't be sleeping as well at the camp as I will at home, with rowdy campers and the stiff cots in partially open tents.

I turn out the lights, and climb under the covers, relishing the air conditioning for one last night, when my phone rings.

I groan, and blindly feel around my bedside table for my phone, almost knocking my lamp over in the process.

"Hello?" I slur, my voice sounding sleepy.

"Hey! It's Chris, I just wanted to make sure I'm still picking you up at eight tomorrow?" Christina asks cheerily. She sounds chipper, as usual, and I can hear a lot of noise in the background. Knowing her, she's either at a club or a party. Neither of which are good.

"Hey, Chris. Yeah, you're picking me up at eight," I say, and the noise in the background increases. "Where are you?"

"Oh, I'm just at a little get together. It won't last much longer, I'll go home soon. We need to get our sleep!" She says, and I hear loud laughter coming from someone near her. She doesn't sound particularly drunk, and that's good. She can't have a hangover on her first day of work.

"Okay. Well, be safe, and make sure to get out soon. You don't want to be too tired," I say, hoping she'll make smart choices. She's been known not to in the past.

"Will do! Goodnight, and see you tomorrow!"

I'm about to return her words and say goodnight when a male voice in the background calls out her name, and the line goes dead.

I sigh and slip back into bed, turning my phone off so I can sleep in peace. It's not like anyone will call me, Christina is really my only friend, but I just want to be safe.

* * *

I wake to my alarm clock blaring. It's seven-thirty, so I have a good half an hour to get ready. Being realistic, she probably won't be here until eight fifteen so I probably have more time.

I eat a few cheerios and drink some orange juice, and get dressed in a simple red tank and jean shorts. I put on my sneakers and check my cell phone one last time. I won't be allowed to bring it to camp; even though we're counselors they don't want us setting bad examples since the campers aren't allowed to have electronics, so all the rules apply to everyone.

Christina texted me that she's on her way, and I pick up my bag and wait on the porch.

She arrives, as I expected, a few minutes before eight fifteen. I bound down the stairs, and I can't keep a smile off my face. I haven't seen her in a few weeks, with her busy work schedule at the mall – she was an in-store model for Hollister – and her new boyfriend, Will. I haven't met him yet, but she's making plans for me to meet him soon. They seem pretty serious.

I open the passenger door and hop in, closing it behind me. She's got the local pop radio on, and is currently singing to one of her favorite songs. She's got a bag of popcorn open, and it's resting on the table between the front two seats. I look at it inquisitively, and she simply replies, "Breakfast."

"Ah," I say as we start to drive off. "So, how have you been?"

She adjusts her sunglasses slightly, "I've been spectacular. What about you? How is the life of Beatrice Prior?"

I cringe involuntarily. Tris has been my nickname for almost my whole life, since I came to Chicago when I was little. Christina called me that because 'Beatrice' was too much of a mouthful for her second grade vocabulary. Soon, everyone at school was calling me Tris and I just adopted it as my name.

Nobody's called me Beatrice since my parents died, except for my brother. But he moved away after they died, and I haven't spoken to him since the funeral.

"Don't call me that," I respond light-heartedly, not wanting her to know how much it hurts, "But I've been okay." I can't lie to her, she has a knack for knowing when someone's lying or even stretching the truth. Because my life has sucked recently, she gets what I'm saying and doesn't ask why. She already knows.

"Well, don't worry. The camp will melt away all your worries," she says with a smile, looking over at me.

"Keep your eyes on the road!" I say while laughing. We're not on the highway yet, and it's early enough that there's not too much traffic, but her driving still terrifies me sometimes. And, ever since my parents' car accident, I don't like driving all that much.

We sit in silence for a little while, eating popcorn and singing to the radio.

"Oh!" She exclaims suddenly, adjusting the rearview mirror, "I forgot. This is Will," she says, motioning towards a sleeping boy in the back seat. "He's also going to be a counselor with us this summer."

I shriek. I hadn't noticed him this whole time. He jolts awake, his blond hair ruffled and his green eyes half closed.

"Will, this is my friend Tris, the one I told you about," Christina says slowly, waiting for him to wake up fully.

"Oh, right….Hi, Tris, it's nice to meet you. I'm Will, and I don't always sleep in cars," he says with a smirk.

I laugh, "That's quite alright, you just scared me. I didn't know you were back there."

"Will and I were at a party last night, and I followed your advice and we went home early, but it was still late enough that he stayed over," she says, somewhat nervously. She taps her manicured fingernails on the steering wheel. It's almost as if she's looking for my approval of this boy, so I decide to reassure her that I like him. And I do. He seems nice.

"That sounds fun, I'm glad you managed to get up so early," I say, smiling at her warmly. She smiles back and relaxes into her chair as we turn on the highway. We're almost there, just a few more minutes.

We've always needed each other's approval on boys. Well, I should say that she's needed my approval. I've never had a boyfriend, or been close to having one. I've deducted that I'm unattractive and short, but I'm not looking for any romance right now and I'm fine to be single.

Christina's always trying to set me up, but I know I'll find the right person when it's meant to be. She says I'm a sucker for true love, a hopeless romantic, some say, and I agree, but I'm not boy-obsessed like she is.

We drive again in silence, until we pull up to the camp a few minutes later. It has a long driveway, twisting and turning through a heavily wooded area. There's a wooden sign out front, with the words 'Angel's Lake' carved into it, with little angel wings and a halo around it. It seems like nothing's changed.

* * *

**A/N: **Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it, please leave a review, whether it be positive or negative I want to hear it all! If you have any criticism or ways I can improve my writing, I'm all for it. I don't think I'm a particularly amazing writer right now, but I want to be someday.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: **Thanks to everyone that reviewed, followed, and favorited! It means so much, and I've never gotten so many (it's not that many, lol) for the first chapter. Some of you requested Four's POV, and I will do that next chapter. For now we're sticking with Tris, but I assure you he's coming.

* * *

**Chapter 2**

_**Tris **_

We drive for a little bit longer, and soon the gravel turns into dirt. And then, all of the sudden, the trees clear. Ahead of us is a large lodge-like building – the office. It's where they keep the campers' medical files and information, and it's where you check in. We have to head in there first to find out where to go.

Christina squeals with excitement, and we park in the gravel parking lot. We appear to be the only ones here, and I hope we're not late.

We decide that we should all go in, in case we have to check in here, or something like that. We all get out, Christina skipping ahead and Will and I following behind her. We climb up the many stairs leading to the front door. I remember when I was little and my mother would come to check us in, it looked like a mountain when you stood at the bottom. Now it just looks like a hill, because I haven't grown all that much. I slide my hand along the wooden railing, marveling at how smooth it is. They must have replaced it; the stairs used to be somewhat unsafe, when they had no railing at all. At least one kid would fall off every year, thank god it wasn't me.

Christina pushes open the big double doors, and we all file in. There's a dark haired woman sitting behind the desk, typing away on her computer. We look around awkwardly, not sure how to get her attention.

Christina speaks up, "Hi, we're new counselors."

The woman looks up and smiles, "Oh, hello! I didn't see you there, sorry. Welcome to Angel's Lake. I'm going to have you sign in right here," she says, pulling out a clipboard and sliding it towards us on the counter.

Christina scribbles a few things, then passes it on to Will, who does the same, and then he passes it to me. It's a list of all our names, and by the look of it there are about 10 of us, the new counselors. I wonder how many returning counselors there are, because already I can tell this camp has both improved and grown in size.

I sign my name, and put the time of my arrival in the second column. I hand it back to the smiling woman behind the desk.

"Thank you," she says, putting the clipboard on her desk, "My name's Tori, by the way. I'm the receptionist for check-in and check-out days. You'll want to keep going straight – do you know where the mess hall is?"

We nod. "Okay, then you just want to head up to the mess hall. Almost everyone is here, so they'll be starting soon. Good luck, and have fun."

We thank her, and head back outside.

The drive to the mess hall is quick. The driveway is surrounded by woods again, there aren't any buildings until you get further in. It's a pretty big camp, it surrounds the large lake called, obviously, Angel's Lake.

We pull up to the gate, and this is where you have to park your cars. No cars are allowed inside the actual camp except for the owner's vehicles and some golf carts for the campers' suitcases and bags. Christina parks the car again, in between two jeeps. There are lots of other cars here, too, so we know for sure we're in the right place.

There's nobody guarding the gate right now - the little building next to it is empty - but that's because it's off hours. Tomorrow there will be someone making sure everyone is campers or the campers parents, because we can't let anyone else in. There's also a video camera perched high in a tree that hangs over the driveway, and that's definitely new, I don't remember it from when I camped here. But it's good to know safety has increased.

We take out our bags and slip past the gate, and it's like the outside world melts away. The birds chirp louder, the river runs faster, and the sun even shines a little brighter, like a beacon on our little camp. That was always my personal favorite part of camp, the escape from reality. Even the air changes; it smells so beautiful, like nature and life, and it becomes lighter, too.

The path narrows, so only two people can walk side by side comfortably. I let Christina walk next to Will, and I tune out their conversation as I walk behind them. I just listen to the sounds of nature around us.

A short walk gets us to the main camp. There is a large, grassy hill on the left side, and opposite are all the buildings. In this cluster, there is the mess hall, the lost and found, the nurse's tent, and the counselors' tent, where we store some equipment.

"It hasn't changed one bit," Christina remarks quietly, to herself, "And we haven't been here in, what, four? Five years?"

I do the math quickly in my head. "We last came as eighth graders, so it's been four years, yeah."

"Wow. Time flies," Christina says.

"Will, have you ever gone to this camp?" I ask, curious to find out whether or not he's going on the tour of the place.

"Oh, yeah, I came all the time in elementary school. Not in middle, though. That was mostly the girls," he answers, winking at Christina who blushes and looks away.

"Shall we?" I say, and they nod. We walk to the mess hall. It looks almost like another log cabin, but smoother on the outside and there are a myriad of big glass windows. Christina pushes open the door, and I involuntarily smile at all the memories I had here, with her and other friends.

There are rows and rows of tables and benches, and signs hanging up all over the walls. Each year, the whole group creates a banner, and they sign their names all over the year written on it. My name is on a ton of these, and I can still remember what fun it was to make them.

Someone clears their throat, presumably one of the higher ups or older counselors, and I realize that the three of us have been looking around for too long. I blush, and try to will it away, but my cheeks get hot. I hate that.

There are about twenty people sitting at the tables in the back, and one man who is standing in front, a big smile stretched across his face. He seems to be in charge.

Christina speaks up, again. "We're new counselors, we were told to come here," she says boldly.

"You were told right. I'm Max, the owner, and you are?" He asks, sticking his hand out to Christina first. She introduces herself, and then Will.

He sticks his hand out to me. I shake it firmly, "I'm Tris."

Max smiles again, "Well Tris, Will, and Christina, why don't you come over here with the rest of us. We're just waiting for one more person, then we can do introductions and start the tour."

We smile and nod, thanking him, and slowly make our way to the back of the room, where everyone is sitting and now noisily conversing.

There aren't many seats left at the one long table most of the people are sitting at, but I don't want to make myself aloof; I want to make friends. So Christina and Will sit next to each other, and I sit across from them.

Most of the people around us don't stop their conversation, but a boy and a girl next to us do. The tan boy smiles brightly, making eye contact with all of us. "I'm Uriah, and this is Marlene. You're first time counselors too?"

We smile and nod, and introduce ourselves again, although he probably already heard our names when we were talking to Max.

He's about to say something else, when Max calls everyone to attention. A large boy scurries in, and sits at a table in the far corner.

"Alright, so we're going to introduce ourselves now. This is the whole group, so you'll all know each other. You're going to say your name, and how many years you've been a counselor here. If you're new, say so. You all know me, so let's start with," he pauses, searching the crowd until his eyes land on me. My heart starts pounding. I don't like talking in front of people at _all_, much less being the first one. "You," he points to me.

"Um, hi, I'm Tris and I'm new," I say, my voice shaking slightly. I hope it's not audible.

Everyone repeats in unison, "Hi Tris." I almost laugh out loud, it sounded so strange, but it's nice to be welcomed, in a way.

Everyone goes around, and I learn most people's names. The new counselors are myself, Christina, Will, Uriah, Marlene, Lynn, Peter, the big kid Al, and Molly. Some of the returning counselors are Lauren, Shauna, Zeke, Eric, and a guy named Four.

Max speaks again, "Right! So now that we're all cozy, I'm going to need a show of hands, any of the newbies, who haven't been to this camp before?"

Al, Peter, and a girl who I think is Molly all raise their hands timidly.

"Okay…hm, Lauren, would you do the honors of conducting this year's tour?" Max asks.

Lauren stands, and smiles. "I would be honored, thank you," she says to Max. She turns around, waving her hand at the three who need the tour, "Come on, guys, there's lots to see and not much time!"

The three jolt up and follow her out the door, and they disappear over the hill.

"Alright. So, this is how this is going to work, newbies. We're going to go over first aid really quick," a few groans chorus from the older counselors, "I know, I know. Get over it," Max smiles. "We're gonna visit a little bit of water safety, and then we're gonna talk about how the sessions are gonna work, especially the first week."

He launches into a full on lecture about first aid and safety around camp. I tune out, not only because I'm a certified lifeguard but because I already know this stuff. I act like I'm listening, which I'm sure everyone is doing.

Then we get to water safety. I already know that, too, so I don't listen to that either. The tour group returns in the middle of that lecture; I guess it was the speed tour or something. They all look sweaty and out of breath but they didn't miss too much, so that's good. However, I'm not sure how effective it will prove to be in helping them around the camp.

Max then talks about how each of the weeks will work, and the kinds of programs we offer. We have arts and crafts, athletics, water games, all sorts of fun things for the kids. He reiterates that in the first week, the pairings will not be random and all of the newbies will have an experienced counselor to help them along and supervise. He also says that although we have the job, the first week is the real test and that if he has any doubt, he won't hesitate to fire us.

"On that note, I'll give you your pairings and you can get acquainted," Max says, reaching over for a clipboard.

He reads them off, and I listen intently for my name. Christina gets paired with Shauna, Will gets paired with Zeke, and there are many more pairs until we get to the last one. "And Tris will be with Four. Okay, go find your partners, get to know each other, cozy up, what ever. Lunch will be served shortly," and with that, he exits the room.

I don't know where this 'Four' is, so I stand up in hopes of trying to find him. I'm too short and I can't see at all, so I try to stand on my toes until I feel a tap on my back. When I turn I'm met with the most handsome guy I've ever laid eyes on.

He's got short brown hair, tan skin, a full lower lip and a slightly hooked nose. But his eyes are what really intrigue me. They're a dreamy dark blue, and I swear I've seen them before.

I realize I've been staring and I blink rapidly, looking away from him.

He smiles and says, "I'm Four. You must be Tris, right?" He has such a deep voice, I almost get lost in his eyes again.

"Um, yeah. I'm Tris," I stutter.

"Well, Tris, welcome to Angel's Lake," he says, and gestures for me to sit down. I take a seat on the bench, and he sits next to me. Everyone else starts to settle down too; I guess it's time for lunch. Christina sits across from me with an older girl, who I'm assuming is Shauna. Will sits next to her and on his other side sits a boy who looks a lot like Uriah, but older.

Nobody has time to talk before the kitchen doors burst open, and the kitchen staff comes out en masse with plates of chicken, burgers, hot dogs, salads, and pasta.

They set one of each item on every table, and we pass around utensils. Cups are given to all of us and pitchers of water and lemonade are put next to the food, in the middle of the table. I'm still amazed at how fast they go. I guess when you have a hundred hungry campers, you have to be pretty efficient at getting food out quickly.

Everyone dives in, filling their plates up all the way with food. I reach for a burger, and grab the last one on the plate. "Damn it," Will's counselor says, looking at my burger. I guess he wanted one too. "Now I have to go to another table. Thanks a lot…"

"Tris," Four says, before I can tell him my name.

The boy huffs. "Well, Tris, thank you very much for the opportunity to steal from my idiot brother," he says. He gets up and stalks to the next table over, standing right behind Uriah. Uriah picks up his burger like he's about to take a bite, and the older boy snatches it from his hands and runs back to us, laughing.

"I'm Zeke, by the way," he says to me as he sits down. He takes a bite, and hums in pleasure. "It's much better stolen. Revenge is sweet."

I realize he must be Uriah's brother. They look very similar, and they act similar as well.

We all laugh, even Four who chuckles quietly, I guess he never shows much emotion. He's kinda scary, and I wonder how he's a counselor if he doesn't like to socialize and be happy. Maybe he's different with the kids.

Max comes in while we're eating, and he stands on one of the front tables. The whole room starts shaking, and everyone is pounding their fists on the table. I hesitantly join in, while my food makes a mess and my water splashes everywhere.

I meet Christina's eyes, and we communicate a similar look of confusion. I start to laugh, and so does she. The pounding eventually stops, and it's a good thing I was done eating because my food is a mess, and the table is drenched with water and lemonade, and the occasional ice cube.

"Welcome to Angel's Lake 2014!" Max bellows, and everyone cheers loudly. I almost cover my ears, but decide that would be rude and not in the spirit of things so I quietly scream along. Everyone quiets down when he raises his hand, and I hear ringing in both my ears.

"Okay, now that you're all excited it's chore time!" Everyone groans, while Max laughs. "Don't worry, while the campers are here, they have to do the work! It's only for today!"

He pulls out another clipboard, and starts announcing where the pairs are assigned to. "Shauna to the latrines," Christina looks appalled as Shauna stands up and beckons for her to follow. She walks after her, giving me a terrified glance and mouthing things I don't understand. I nod and give a thumbs up, not containing my laughter. "Zeke to the kitchen," Max says, and Zeke jumps up and fist pumps the air.

"Yeah, Will, come on! Extra food for us!" The boys run into the kitchen, pushing open the door and almost knocking over one of the cooks.

"Lauren to Pine Wood," Max says. The girl who took the boys on the tour stands up, and Uriah follows her. They're cleaning one of the five camps where the campers sleep. There's Pine Wood, Maple Ledge, Ivy Hill, Oak Beach, and Sun Peak.

"Four to the beach." Four gets up and I follow him out the back door. He doesn't speak as we walk briskly down the gravel path that will lead us to the lake.

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry this is so long, I just couldn't stop! It's not the best place to end, but I'll pick up right where we left of next time. Can I get 10 reviews for this chapter, please? Thank you all for the support, it makes me want to write even more

Question: I'm having trouble deciding on what her back story with Four is. Should they have come from the same town, were they friends when they were little, or were they friends when they were in camp together? I don't know, leave a response or a suggestion in a review!


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **Sorry this took so long! I'll probably be updating once a week, but not on a regular schedule because that's not going to work for me..okay I've been pondering what their back story should be, and if they should even have one and most of you voted for they knew each other at camp but I got a few saying they shouldn't know each other at all, and I decided I can't really do a strong back story without it being too cliché. I feel like Tobias wouldn't have talked to her anyways, being a shy and abused child..so we're going with no back story.

*Eek, this is long. Okay this is important: I've removed Eric from the story because although there will be problems and minimal drama, I don't want someone as evil as he is invading my camp story. I replaced him with Shauna.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

_**Four**_

I walk quickly to the beach, gravel and dust flying as I tread down the last hill. I hear quiet footsteps behind me and I know that Tris is following closely behind.

The path forks up ahead, and I take the left one without thought; I know my way around here very well. The gravel transitions into dirt as we pass the sign for the beach. It's not really a beach, but more of a sandy patch on the edge of the lake. There was some natural sand, but with most places these days they brought in tons of it to make it larger.

The forest thins out as we get closer, and I can hear the soft ripples of water hitting the land. The footsteps behind me stop, and I almost turn around to make sure she's still coming, but then I realize we're walking over a bedding of fallen pine needles, so her soft steps become so muffled they cease.

When we reach the sand, I shuck my shoes and my backpack, throwing them where the forest meets the beach. Tris follows suit and does the same. I turn to her, dreading explaining the clean up process. I'd much rather work alone, as I mostly do.

I've always been one of the people who trains new counselors, because nobody really wants to do it – except for my overly-perky friends – and because Max thinks I should integrate myself more into the staff. He calls us one big family, but if we are a family I'm like a distant relative that never talks to you and only shows up for the big holidays, like Christmas or the Fourth of July.

Just because I do this job doesn't mean I like it. I've been working here for two years, and my first year I was a regular counselor, and I didn't like that very much. I can deal with the little boys, but having 13 year old girls hit on you is not very fun. So last year I signed up to be a life guard, and was spared from becoming the item of affection for teens and pre teens.

This year, however, I'm a counselor again. Max doesn't like any of us being too distant, and he decided the best way for me to fit in was to be a regular counselor. Lets just say I'm not looking forward to it.

Being around another adult is better than kids, but I still don't like talking to anyone, really, much less explaining myself and my actions to them.

I turn to Tris. "So, we start with-"

She cuts me off before I even begin, "First we pick up garbage. We sort out the glass and the recyclables, and put them into bins over there," she points to the three bins outside the little beach hut, "Then we clean the hut, the docks, and the separating ropes. When we're done we rake the sand, making sure not to get any footprints on it." She finishes with a smile, and proudly looks up at me. She's almost a foot shorter than I am, so whenever I look at her I have to look at a steep downward angle.

Her light blue eyes pierce through me, and I feel myself getting lost. I mentally shake my head, and I avert my gaze. "That's pretty much it. Did you do beach clean up when you were a camper?" I ask a stupid question. Of course she did, why else would she know all this?

She nods, still smiling. "Every year it got assigned to my group. I'm pretty much an expert," she says boldly. I'm surprised at how confident she is. When I first met her earlier, she was quiet and often looked at the floor and blushed. She looked scared of Zeke – I don't blame her for that one, he's a talker – and she acted timid and shy towards me. I don't know if that was an act, or if she's coming out of her shell or something, but I know that she intrigues me. And she shouldn't.

"Okay then, beach expert, let's get going on that trash," I say, surprising myself at how light my voice sounds. I'm normally a very serious person.

She laughs and my heart flutters in my chest. I can't let this happen to me, not now. This is my last year working here, then I go to college. Far, far away. I can't get attached, and I most certainly cannot have a crush on the girl I'm supposed to be training.

I shake my head to rid myself of the odd feeling, and start to comb the sand for trash, and so does she. I pick up a few candy wrappers, one shard of glass, a dirty water bottle and a pair of Speedo goggles.

She gets the same kind of stuff, and we put the trash in the appropriate bins next to the hut.

"And now, we clean," she says, faking a sigh. I hold in a laugh.

We walk inside the small hut. It's mostly a place for the counselors and life guards to chill when they're off duty. There's a mini fridge that will soon be stocked with sodas and water. It's the only place you can get a drink that's not water, milk, or juice. They don't let campers have soda, so that's why it's in here. There's a wall full of first aid kits and life guard materials – floaties, life vests, whistles, and other stuff of that nature. There are two beat up couches in one corner, near the fridge, and in the other corner is a bin almost exploding with beach toys.

I grab the broom and the dustpan from the corner near the door. "Do you want to sweep or hold the dustpan?" I ask her. I'm not normally this talkative with the others, not that I've talked to her much at all, but I'm usually quiet and distant. I can't help myself.

She taps her chin, smiling. "I'll sweep, if that's okay with you."

I smile back, "That's fine."

We get into a rhythm. Tris sweeps a few times, making a small pile of dust in the middle of the room. She pushes it into the dustpan, and while she makes another pile I head outside and dump it into the trash. We're done in no time, and after we dust the windows and furniture off quickly it looks brand new.

Next on the list is cleaning the docks and the ropes that confine the swimmers into a small area along the coast, and they separate the different swimming levels. To clean those, we have to swim. I didn't think to bring my bathing suit, but I think there are some extra bottoms in the hut.

The only problem is that I can't swim without a shirt. I never have, and I never will. It'll look odd if I swim with my regular shirt on, so I can only hope that they have a swimming shirt in the hut, too. But if I have to I'll swim in my normal shirt; walking around in damp clothes is better than exposing myself to anybody.

"Do you have your bathing suit?" I ask her, thinking that maybe she came prepared and brought it in her backpack.

She nods, pulling out a blue one-piece. "I'll go get changed over there," she says, gesturing to the woods.

I nod, and my mouth starts to get dry at the idea of her being naked only a few feet away from me. I clear my head at the thought."I'm hoping to find a bathing suit in the hut, and if I do I'll change in there."

"Okay!" Tris says, hurrying off to the woods with her suit.

My mind starts to imagine what she'll look like in that tight piece of clothing, and, again, I shake my head and busy myself with finding a suit in the hut.

I find, thankfully, red swim trunks and a black swim shirt. I change quickly and emerge from the hut to find Tris walking back over, her clothes dangling from her hand. I catch sight of a lacy bra, and I swallow thickly. She's very small, but it works for her. She's proportionate. The bathing suit looks amazing on her, clinging in all the right places. I avert my eyes, not sure that I'd be able to stop looking if I kept staring any longer.

I just met her, _I just met her_ and I can't be thinking like this.

"Ready?" She asks cheerfully, bringing me out of my reverie.

I nod, and we head out towards the water, bringing brushes and rags for cleaning.

She walks right in, while I timidly edge my feet in the murky water. It's always the coldest in the beginning of summer, when the sun hasn't had enough time to really warm it up. I've always been able to get in quickly, but somehow she just walks in like it's 90 degrees.

When she's in to her waist she dives under, and I can barely see her blond hair underneath the water. It looks almost green as it waves and flows behind her. She reaches the dock in no time, and she pops out of the water smiling.

"Coming?" she calls out. I'm in to my knees now, and I know we can't waste any more time. We'll have to be back before dinner, and my watch is telling me that it's already four thirty. Dinner's served at five thirty, and it will take a while to clean all the docks and ropes.

I nod, taking a deep breath, and I plunge under. The cold pricks me on all sides, pushing in on me. It subsides after a few seconds, and then I move. I've never liked swimming much, but that's because it would sting my scars in the summer. They're healed now, but the bad memories still taint the whole activity for me.

I come up to her laughter. She's climbed up onto the farthest deck, the one for the level three swimmers. I guess we'll work our way backwards, which makes sense.

There are three docks, one for each level of swimming. The campers get tested on the first day, and their skills are challenged. They get a colored wristband to wear for the rest of the week so we know which level they're allowed in.

Level one has a long dock attached to the shore, so it's like a square missing one side. The whole area for level one is very shallow, so everyone can touch the ground, meaning it's for the weaker swimmers. It also includes the sand, so it's also for anyone who wants to relax or play on land.

Level two has a smaller, square dock that floats a few feet away from level one's dock. Most of the campers can barely touch the ground in this level, so it's for the good swimmers, but if they need to get out the dock is right there.

Level three is for the strong swimmers. The bottom is very far down, so far that you have to dive to get to it. It's a large, open area with a dock at the far end, the one Tris is currently standing on.

By the time I get to her, she's on her hands and knees scrubbing with the rag. If you don't clean the docks regularly, they accumulate algae and other plants on the sides and bottom, and sometimes they get a filmy layer on top.

I help her, and soon we have it all clean.

We jump off opposite sides so we can both clean a different rope. I tread water and occasionally push forward, running the rag along the white-and-blue rope to get the plants off it.

We do the same with the level two dock, the ropes, and eventually the level one dock. We don't talk much, but we work very efficiently. At least I've gotten to train a counselor who actually does her work, and does it well.

We emerge from the water tired but satisfied, and we admire our work before going our separate ways and changing.

I hang my borrowed suit on the clothes line outside, and grab a towel to dry my hair. I slip back into my shorts and tee, and almost bump in to Tris, who is coming in through the door.

"Sorry," we both say at the same time. She smiles, and so do I. She slips past me to put away her towel, and she pulls her wet hair up into a messy bun.

I grab two rakes from the corner by the door, and hand one to her on her way out. We start on opposite sides, again, so we get more done. We rake in rows parallel to the water, and it gets done a lot faster with two people, but it still takes a lot of time.

We finish, and ,careful to not make any footprints, put the rakes back in the shed. We grab our backpacks and put on our shoes, and hurry down the paths to the dining hall.

* * *

**A/N:** As always, thank you for reading! The number of favorites and follows have been amazing, so thank you! I didn't expect to have this many readers, but I'm glad you're all here. Sorry if Tobias seems a little OOC, but I'm trying to have him be really aloof and out of it so when he starts to really like Tris you can see the difference.

Please review!


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: **Sorry I'm updating kind of slowly! I haven't been feeling well lately; lots of headaches and that means I can't read or write :/

* * *

**Chapter 4**

_**Tris **_

I fix the back of my old converse, and almost stumble on a root as we hurry back to the dining hall. If I remember correctly, dinner is served at five thirty, and right now it's five twenty-five. And we're a good fifteen minutes walk.

Four walks slightly ahead of me; for every one step he takes I take two. His dark hair, still gleaming wet from our little swim, is dripping down his back, leaving little dark drips that sink into the fabric.

I've only known him for a few hours but I've already noticed so much about him that mystifies me. His name? I can't imagine it being his real name, so it must be a nickname. But why would he hide his real name?

And when we went in the water, he wore a swim shirt. He made it seem like he wouldn't swim without one, but I wouldn't be complaining if he didn't. What does he have to hide? He shouldn't be self conscious of anything, from what I've seen.

We walk in a slightly uncomfortable silence, almost as if he's ignoring me, but I think he's just lost in thought. The sound of clanking dishes and noisy chatter intensifies as the woods clear and we see the dining hall. Looks like we're late.

When we get inside, I quickly search the room for Christina or Will. I find them both sitting at the center table, surrounded by both new and old counselors. They didn't waste any time making friends, but that's what I would expect from Christina. She spots us standing by the door, and she pats an empty seat next to her and waves me over.

I sit down and plop my backpack next to my chair, and Four finds an empty seat across from me to the left.

"Look who finally came back! We worried you two got lost in the woods," Zeke says, making an odd face at Four. I can't decipher his emotions, but by the look Four gives him it wasn't a meaningless joke.

"Cleaning the beach is hard work," Four says, completely serious, "We didn't get as lucky as some did; like cleaning the kitchen, for example," he quirks his eyebrows at his friend.

"Hey, hey, we had our fair share of work, we just got to eat leftovers and eat dinner early. What's so great about that?" Zeke counters.

Christina taps me on the shoulder, and I turn to face her, the boys' bickering fading into the background. "Yeah?"

"How was the beach with Mr. Hotty over there?" she whispers.

I almost choke on my green beans. She laughs and reaches over to pat my back, and I try to swat her hand away. "Chris, you have a _boyfriend!_" I whisper back, once I've downed some water and coughed up a storm.

She laughs, "I'm not talking about me, I'm talking about _you_! You say you've never had time for a boyfriend, well, you're paired up together, you might as well get working on it now."

I set down my water and glare at her. "Who says I even like him?" I say louder, but quiet enough that I think - hope – the rest of the table can't hear.

"Girl, you didn't have to say. I can tell."

"I've only known him for a few hours!" I hiss, "That's not even enough time to decide if I liked him, even if it was in the tiniest bit." After I say that I realize it sounds like I _do_ like him. And I'm not lying, exactly, I'm just not sure yet. But I still don't have time for boys, and I don't have time for a stupid summer fling. I have a real life I need to prepare for, school.

She winks, "Whatever you say."

I roll my eyes. "Can we change the subject?" She nods. "How were the latrines?" I ask, not able to hide my smirk.

She fakes a gag. "Don't get me started. I mean, it wasn't as bad as you may think, since nobody's pooped in it yet, but there were a _ton_ of spiders and flies and there was dirt all over the floor. It was disgusting," she concludes with a shudder.

"Who's going to swat the spiders when the campers find them in their beds?" I ask. Christina's wonderful with kids, and she's perfect for this job, but nature seems to be her weakness. She's had poison ivy more times than I can count, hundreds of bee stings, and even a spider bite. When we went here together as kids, her mosquito net broke in the middle of the night and the next morning she was covered head to toe in bites.

She laughs, and puts a manicured hand on my shoulder. "Shauna, or whoever I'm paired with. Let's be real."

"If I ever get paired with you I won't be killing any spiders," Will says from across the table. Christina stares at him, flustered, probably because he was listening to our conversation.

"Uh! Let's hope I'm not paired with you then!" She says, immediately regaining her collected demeanor. I turn away from the pair, not wanting to hear any more flirting. They're cute together, but I've never liked listening to couples be mushy and kiss and do whatever it is couples do.

"Find any seafood at the beach Tris?" I look up to see Uriah smiling at me from across the table.

I can't help but laugh. "Nope. Any dead bodies up at Pinewood?"

"Just one. I'll take it, could've been worse," he says with a shrug.

I laugh again. It's only been a few hours and I already feel like I fit in here. I'm close to making friends, and everyone seems really nice, like one big family, just goofing around and having fun. Four's a bit disconnected, but he still participates in conversation. He's just not as…animated as, say, Zeke and Uriah.

"And if you don't stop talking there will be another body up there this night," Zeke buts in. "They're bringing out the dessert."

My ears perk up at the word. I haven't eaten dessert in months. The kitchen doors burst open, and all conversation ceases.

The dinner plates are swept away, and plates of cake are set in front of each of us. It's a large slice of chocolate, with chocolate frosting and chocolate filling.

"I've missed this for years!" I exclaim. I had forgotten about the camp's famous chocolate cake, served once a week for dessert. We all dig in greedily, the conversation forgotten as we eat hungrily.

Max enters the room shortly after we finish eating, and everyone's heads snap up in attention. "Did you all enjoy the meal?" He asks, smiling broadly.

There's a chorus of shouts and yells, all of them very positive, followed by a round of laughter. "I'm glad!" Max says loudly, and everyone gets quiet again. It's amazing how much power he has. "So it will be getting dark soon, and you all still have quite a bit of work to do to prepare for tomorrow. You'll have to bring up half of the week's food, check over the cabins, that sort of stuff. The experienced counselors know the drill. Be up at seven o'clock sharp," he says, and makes a quick exit.

Everyone gets up and finds their partners. Four gestures for me to follow him, and I hurry through the crowd to get out of the back door, where he went. He has a clipboard in his hands, and is flipping through the pages.

"We got the water sports program, and we're staying at Oak Beach," he explains, referencing one of the cabin areas. I love Oak Beach; it's right next to the lake in the beautiful part of the forest. "So let's get a truck and pick up the food."

We walk to a garage near the entrance, where most of the pairs are. There are seven golf carts that are for staff only, and are just used to bring the campers' bags and the food to and from the sleeping sites.

Four grabs the keys to one of them off the wall, signing our names in the register, and we hop in. There's a bit of traffic at first, with all the pairs leaving at once. We pass Christina and Shauna, and we wave and smile at each other. I didn't get a chance to talk to her about where she's staying and what program she has, but hopefully I'll be able to catch up with her tomorrow at breakfast before the campers arrive.

It's a mob scene at the dining hall. Four instructs me to wait here and help him load up the food. It takes about ten minutes, then he comes out with four boxes stacked in his arms. I hurry to help him.

"I've got it," he insists as I try to grab the top one.

"Come on, I can carry one. I'm not weak."

"I know, but you don't need to help me. I can get it," he says. I can't see his face; it's hidden behind boxes.

"If this is some show of your manliness, it's stupid. Just let me carry a box." I don't really care _that_ much, but I can't back down now. It will be a sign of submission, like prey giving in to the predator.

I hear a low chuckle from behind the boxes, and he side steps me and continues walking to the cart. "What's so funny? I can help, you know!" I will not be treated like his inferior, although this week he is technically above me, I won't let him see me as weaker than him.

He sets the boxes down, then picks each one up and puts them in the back of the golf cart. He turns around to face me, a small smirk twisting his lips.

I put my hands on my hips. "You have to let me learn; I won't get anything out of this if you do everything."

He just laughs again, and gets in the cart. I hold back a frustrated noise, and climb in.

We're the only ones staying at Oak Beach this week, so nobody else is on the path. That makes the ride all the more quiet. Four doesn't seem to be annoyed, if anything, he's amused. Which is even worse.

We get there in no time, and he takes two of the boxes, letting me carry the other two. They're _really_ heavy, but I ignore it.

The cabins look just like I remember. They're not really cabins, per se, but more like wooden *lean-tos. They only have three walls, leaving one side open in the front. They have big, slanted roofs, and two windows, one on each side. There are four beds in every one, just bare mattresses and frames. The campers will bring sheets and pillows or sleeping bags, if they prefer. They also bring mosquito nets to protect them from pesky bugs at night.

Counselors are provided with sheets and pillows, for us to use the whole summer, so we picked those up with the food.

There are five lean-tos at each camp site, one for counselors, and the rest for campers. That means we _could_ have a group of 16 campers, but normally groups are around 10.

In the middle there's a big gazebo-like structure with picnic tables and a fire pit to the left. Normally we eat in the dining hall, but campers may choose to cook out over the fire, or have dessert on a particular night. Sometimes we even make breakfast at the camp, depending on what the day's activities are.

We carry the boxes to the gazebo, and we put them in a big metal container, so animals can't get in. There's a lock with a simple combination only the counselors are allowed to know.

I go back to the cart to get my bag, and I decide to grab Four's and give it to him. It's surprisingly light. If we're going to have to be sleeping in the same room for a whole week, I figure I have to at least be civil to him, and being nice wouldn't hurt.

"Oh, thanks," he says as I hand it to him. "Let's set up our beds, then we can do a quick check of the cabins for animals, spiders, that stuff. Then we check the latrines, and after that I'm going to bed."

"Sounds good," I reply.

Our lean-to only has three beds, but we only need two of them. Four sets his bag on the bed all the way to the right, and I put mine on the far left bed, which leaves the middle one unoccupied. It's a bit awkward already that I have to sleep in the same lean-to as him, after only knowing him for a few hours, but it's better that we're a bit more spread out.

I pull out the sheets the camp provided me with, and lay them out on the bed quickly. I know how to make a bed very well; my parents never did it for me, so I learned quickly. I set the pillow on top, and hang up the brand new mosquito net.

Four does the same, and we make our rounds. The lean-tos are all clean, as are the latrines.

It only just got dark, but we have to get up rather early tomorrow, so we say awkward goodnights and I fall asleep to the comforting sounds of nature.

* * *

**A/N:** Thanks for reading! Sorry if there are any mistakes, I wanted to update quickly and didn't proof read like I normally do.

*If you don't know what a lean-to is, search it on google. I tried my best to describe it, but it's hard to imagine if you don't already know what they are.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: **Trying to update quicker, but it seems I've contracted a sinus infection, so after many medications, here we are! Big thanks to all of you, we hit 60 reviews, 50 favorites, and 90 followers! Happy reading! :)

* * *

**Chapter 5**

_**Tris **_

I wake to the chirping of birds and the rustling of leaves. I'm momentarily disoriented when I open my eyes to bright sunlight, but I quickly remember where I am. I'm wondering who designed this lean-to so that it faces the sun when it rises…I suppose it helps you get up.

I climb out of the covers and am struck by frigid morning air. I push the mosquito net aside, and get my bag from under my bed, where I put it last night. I slip on a sweatshirt and my boots.

Four's bed is empty, so I assume he's up already. I grab my toiletries bag; basically my toothbrush and toothpaste, and my hairbrush, and I head over to the spicket. The grass is slick with dew, and the air seems heavier, but it smells fresh. Four is standing next to the spicket, brushing his teeth. The sun has just risen over the treeline, and it outlines his body perfectly, creating a crown of bright hair around his head.

I raise my hand in a wave when he sees me. He waves back as I start to brush my teeth. He leaves to spit in the woods, and I follow shortly after. I rinse out my toothbrush after him, and start to brush my hair thoroughly.

Four stands next to me, just watching me. "Good morning," I say slowly.

He rubs the back of his neck wearily, "Good morning," his voice is husky, and I swallow thickly. "We have to be down in 20, have breakfast, and get our shirts."

"Okay. So we don't get dressed for breakfast?" I ask. The camp supplies us with shirts that say the camp name and logo so all the kids know who's in charge.

He laughs. "When the campers aren't here, everyone's allowed to act tired. So no, we don't get dressed."

"Oh. Okay." I finish brushing my hair and I pull it up into a ponytail. I put my bag away and we get in the golf cart and head down to the dining hall.

We ride in silence for a few minutes, until Four speaks up. "So…did you ever do water sports here as a kid?" Four questions, his hands in his pockets and his eyes lowered to the ground.

I momentarily go blank, too surprised at his attempt to start conversation to think of an answer. "Uh, no, I was more of a high ropes kind of girl," I answer truthfully. I was never in to water sports much, I preferred doing ropes courses and climbing trees. "I did some up at my parents' camp, though."

"I never did water sports either, or high ropes. I did a lot of hiking and fire building," he says, "Now that I say it, it sounds lame. But I did climb a mountain, once."

"Really?" I ask. "Which one?"

"Just some little one a few hours out from Chicago."

"Well, that's still cool. A mountain is a mountain."

He laughs, "I guess. It would've sounded cooler if I'd climbed Mount Everest or something like that."

"Yeah, not gonna lie, that would have been way cooler."

We arrive at the dining hall, and Four parks the cart outside. When we open the door I'm assaulted by two things at once. A big golden retriever jumps on me, almost knocking me down, and a t-shirt is thrown at my face.

"Woah, there. Come here, Lissy! Elizabeth! Here right now," a voice booms, "Sorry about that." I recognize it as Max's. Immediately the dog retreats, and I lift the shirt off my face. I almost trip over an uneven floorboard, and I feel hands on my waist, steadying me.

I look up to find my face inches from Four's. I clear my throat, but I can't rip my gaze from his. "Um, thank you."

His hands leave my body and I feel cold. "No problem. That's the camp dog, Lissy, or Elizabeth. She's _very_ friendly."

I let out a laugh. "Very friendly indeed." I feel so embarrassed after that just happened in front of the whole staff, but when we finally sit down at the table everyone acts like nothing happened. At first I think they're being nice about it, but then I realize that they are barely awake. Christina's stirring her coffee, when there's no sugar or cream to be dissolved. Zeke's staring at a heaping plate of pancakes in the middle of the table, his eyes unfocused.

I sit across from Christina, and Four sits next to me. "Are they always like this?" I ask him, leaning over so the rest of the table hopefully can't hear. Not like it really matters, because I don't think they even know we're here.

"Yeah, when the campers aren't here, like I said, everyone wanders around in pajamas and drinks buckets full of coffee and they still look like zombies."

I laugh at what I think is the first joke he's told since I've been here. I take a few pancakes and some bacon, and eat quickly while the rest of the table slowly wakes up.

Christina finally stops stirring to drink her coffee. She makes a disgusted face, "It's freezing," she explains. Of course her first words in the morning to us would be a complaint. She gets up and slowly gets a new coffee, and begins stirring again.

"Do they really expect us to wear these shirts?" she asks a little bit later, referring to the shirt she's holding up. I realize it's the same one Max threw at me, and it's been in my lap the whole time. I pick it up to examine it.

The shirt is bright green, with a the camp's logo on the front and back. It says 'counselor' in big block letters on the top of the back.

"Yeah, so the campers can identify us," Zeke answers.

She scoffs. "This is so boxy. I can't wear this."

"You'll wear it if you want to keep your job," Will says pointedly, warranting an eye roll from Chris.

"Are we allowed to…I don't know, cut it up or something?" she asks in a pleading tone.

"Yeah, I've seen girls do that. You'll have to go over to the art place, and get some scissors and stuff," Zeke says, still nursing a coffee he's had the whole time.

Christina looks to me, her grumpy attitude vanished. "Tris! We have to go up there and make our shirts look cool!" she squeals.

"Chris, I don't want to waste time going up there. Just roll the sleeves and tie it in the back or something," I say.

"What are you, twelve?" She sets her coffee down. That means she's serious. "Come on, just come with me. It's on the way to your camp, kinda. We don't need to be here for drop off until noon."

I feel my willpower dissolving. I'm about to object when Four speaks up. "It's not out of our way; we all have to decorate little name pins in the art tent anyways."

I put on a fake smile. "Well, then I guess I have no way out. Thanks for that Four," I deadpan.

He smiles at me, seemingly suppressing a laugh. "Glad to be of service."

We finish eating quickly, and walk up to the art tent as a group. The arts and crafts manager, Marlene I think, has set out lots of little white circles with pins on the back for us to decorate. There are markers and sequins spaced evenly on all the wooden tables.

"Hello, hello! Sit down and get creative! Just clearly print your name and decorate the outside," Marlene explains. She's already wearing her pin on her neon green camp shirt.

We all sit down at the same table. I take a dark green marker and outline my name in a swirly font, in big connected block letters. Then I use a slightly lighter green marker, and so on, so it's a nice gradient. I draw a beach and the ocean in the background, with the sun high in the cloudless sky. It's a lot, but it's not too busy, and it's very readable.

The rest of the group finishes shortly after. They all have very nice artistic skills, and I receive a lot of compliments on mine as well. I used to do a lot of art, before my parents died, but after that it sort of lost it's appeal to me.

Christina gets up and talks to Marlene about the shirts, and I notice that Four's still working. He's outlined a big letter four in red, and he has orange and yellow flames behind it. It's really good, and I think it's funny that he just wrote the number instead of writing it out. It also makes me wonder, again, what exactly is the deal with his name. I assume it's a nickname, because no parents would name their child after a number. But why doesn't he want anyone to know his real name?

I'm brought out of my thoughts when Christina calls my name. I see Marlene has set up some scissors and is currently cutting Chris's shirt. I walk over to them.

"I'm thinking I want to go with a tank top," Christina says.

"Good for you, because I can't deal with all that extra sunscreen," I say. I just want to do a V-neck, because those are much more flattering than the necklines on the shirts we have now.

Christina scoffs as Marlene holds up the shirt to her, measuring it. "I don't use sunscreen, sweety. You should know that."

"I know you don't, because for some reason you want to die of skin cancer when you're fifty."

"Look, Miss Perfect, a little bit of sun won't hurt me. I'm still young! You've got to live while you still have it!" She practically shouts. Marlene laughs, and Will's head pops up from behind her shoulder.

"Glad you're ready to live now, but I'd like you to live forever. So we're going to be putting on sunscreen. And you have to set a good example for the kids," Will speaks up, making Chris jump.

"You scared me!" She bats at his arms, which are snaking around her waist to hug her. They look like they're about to kiss and I look away.

Marlene finishes Christina's shirt, and she starts on mine. I say I want a high v-neck, and she nods and starts working on it. She only takes a few simple cuts and it looks perfect. I thank her and I check on Four. He's finished his, and it looks amazing.

"Wow…I, uh, that's really good," I stutter out. He put on his camp shirt, and it's a bit too small so it hugs his muscular arms, and his chest. He clipped his pin to the top left corner.

He cracks a twisted smile, "Thanks," he says. He checks his watch. "Oh, we better get out of here. It's almost ten."

"Okay," I say, turning away from Four. "Hey Chris!" I get her attention; she was still making out with Will. "Sorry to interrupt but we're heading out. Have a good first day, don't get fired!"

"You too!" she says, then gets sucked into Will. I cringe and follow Four out the door.

We have to walk all the way to Oak Beach since the golf carts are going to be used to bring in campers' bags.

"Okay, so once we get up there you have to get changed, and we have to check over the lean-tos one more time. Then we have to go set up the canoes and rowboats, and make sure we have enough life vests. Today, after the swim tests, we're going to go boating," Four informs me.

"Got it. Do you know how many campers we have?" I ask. I hope it's not too many, but I want to have a fair amount of kids. I think water sports will be pretty popular, though.

"I think we have 13 or 14," he responds.

I fight the urge to groan. He must notice, because he chuckles softly. "I know it's a bit too many, but we'll deal. There's two of us for a reason."

"That's not what I mean, I just, I like kids, but above ten is just chaos."

"Trust me, I know. Between two years of working here and going here every summer for most of my childhood years, I'm experienced in the area of large groups," he says, somewhat proudly.

The forest thins out, and I notice that we're almost there. Just a few more hills and we'll see the beach and our cabins.

"Oh yeah? I had a group once that was 20 kids. We had three counselors and they had to add an extra bed to each lean-to," I retort. Christina was in that group with me, actually. It was my fourth year and I was doing the arts and crafts program. It was also the first year that Caleb was in a different group. He did the science experiments one, and I was devastated that we were apart.

"And I almost wouldn't be able to top that, if it weren't for last year," he says mysteriously.

"Continue," I prompt, making hand gestures at him.

"Alright, if you really want to know. Might give you nightmares," he says as we top the last hill. I can see our campsite now, and it looks so beautiful this time of day, with the sun filtering through the leaves.

"I think I can handle it."

"Okay," Four starts. "Zeke and I were paired up together. Perfect, right?" He looks to me for a response, and I nod my head. "Right. Well, it wasn't so great. Turns out, they had let 25 kids in the group. So of course we asked for another counselor. We got Shauna, Zeke's girlfriend, and it was resolved."

"That's only 5 more kids," I say, poking him in the shoulder playfully. I shouldn't have done that, but I can't help it, it sort of just happened.

"I'm not done yet," he starts again. "So the night before, Shauna gets sick. I mean really sick. Vomiting, fever, chills, the whole deal. We drove her back up and talked to Max. He said they were already low on staff, and that they couldn't keep the campers from coming, so we would have to deal."

"So the two of you were in charge of 25 kids for a week?" I ask.

He nods solemnly. "It was definitely a life changer," he adds as we reach the site.

"I'll get changed," I say, and I walk into the lean-to. He goes to the other side, disappearing behind the gazebo, so I change quickly into my camp shirt and a pair of tan shorts, with my bathing suit underneath. I pin my name tag to the bottom right of the shirt and re-tie my laces.

I find Four sitting in the gazebo facing away from where I was changing, and it feels good to know that he respects me enough to not look when I was undressing. I pull my hair up into a ponytail, and sit across from him.

"Did you check it over?" I ask, running my hands over my hair to check for bumps in the ponytail.

He turns around and nods. "We have another hour and a half until they're here, so we have to be quick at getting these boats out."

We hurry over to the beach, which is a short walk from our campsite, and Four pulls out a ring of keys and manages to open the shed that's looks just the little beach hut, but is bigger and in the woods a bit.

It's full of canoes, rowboats, and kayaks, of all different colors. Some are on racks on the wall, and some are just piled carelessly on the floor. It's dusty, but most of the boats look pretty clean.

"So are they all using canoes and rowboats?" I ask him.

He nods, "It would be too much to keep track of if they all had their own boat."

"Okay, so how many do we need?"

"Eh, we'll get six out, one for you and me, and just in case a group of two wants to go. They all have their friend groups and such," Four says, starting to get a red canoe off the wall. "Can you help me carry this?" he asks.

I go over to him and grab the other end, and he swivels so he's walking backwards towards the door. I don't feel like I'm lifting it at all, but I guess we don't want them scuffing up the floor.

Once we get into the sand he asks me to drag it to the edge of the water, and I start doing that while he gets another one down. It's so hot I wish I could just abandon this and jump in the lake, and it's a good thing I put my suit on under my clothes because I will _definitely_ be swimming when we're at the lake for the tests, at some point.

"Tris!" Four calls from the doorway. He's holding the canoe from the middle, and it doesn't seem to be making him use any effort. So I was right, he can get them by himself. It doesn't surprise me, with him being so strong, and it's nice to know that he at least let me help him once when he didn't need it.

I run to the door and help him set it down on the sand, and I drag it to the beach again. We repeat this process six times, and when we finish my arms are sore and my back hurts, but all the boats are lined up and ready to go.

"We'll get the paddles and life vests later," he tells me as we start to walk to the main camp.

"Sounds good," I reply. I find myself getting nervous for some reason, as we get closer to the place where the campers will arrive. I'm worrying that they won't like me, or they won't respect me, basically that everything will go wrong. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

* * *

**A/N: **Please review and tell me what you think! Can we get 100 follows?


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: **Thank you for all the lovely reviews & the support! I'm trying not to rant in this, but something has come to my attention…this story is only six chapters long and already I've found copycat stories, some of which are extremely like mine. It's not like my idea is the most original ever, so I'm not going to do anything about it, because people can write what they choose, I just wish that for once they would come up with ideas of their own. :/ ok rant over, here's a Four POV for you ;)

* * *

**Chapter 6**

_**Four**_

Tris and I finish getting the boats out in no time, and we walk back to the main camp, where the campers will arrive very soon. She's quiet, more so than usual. She looks straight ahead and walks determinedly, with a furrowed brow and a crease in her forehead. It's pretty cute.

I want to slap myself for thinking that. She's just my partner, and I'm just going to be training her. Besides, no work relationships are allowed unless Max approves it. Zeke and Shauna barely ever show PDA, and Tris's friends Christina and Will are going to have to cut it back or else they'll get in trouble.

Not like I'd even consider having a relationship, anyways. I remind myself that I've only known her for about a day, and nobody would want to date me anyways. I have too many problems, too much baggage.

I can hear the commotion of the first day before the trees clear. Engines running, hurried footsteps on gravel, and the occasional shout. That means the campers are going to be here in a few short minutes, and, as usual, we're likely behind.

When the forest thins out, I see a mass of green clad workers lifting boxes and driving around. "What do we need to do?" Tris asks from beside me. It doesn't surprise me that she wants to help; I've noticed that she's the kind of person who dislikes standing on the sidelines and would much rather be on the field helping out.

"I have to help with directing traffic at the entrance. You should check in with Max and get the stuff for check in. Basically you'll have a colored flag so the campers know which group to go to, a clipboard with all the names that you have to check off, and you'll instruct them to set their bags down. We'll come and bring the bags up to the campsites while they're eating lunch," I say. I let her do the greeting because I figure she's more social than I am, not by much, but I don't really like small talk with kids and their parents. "Oh, and make sure they've had their medical exam."

She nods, "Got it. So after I've got all of them, do they just leave their stuff on the ground?"

"Yeah, you set the flag down so the drivers know where it's headed, and take them into lunch. Their parents might want to stick around, but you have to make them go. Nicely, of course," I remind, although she doesn't seem like the kind of person to be rude. _You don't know her that well_, I remind myself. But I want to.

"Okay. Are you going to meet us in the dining hall?" she inquires, and my heart flutters at the thought that she wants me there, but then I realize that she probably doesn't want to handle the kids alone.

"Yeah, I'll come in near the end, and we'll take them up to camp, get changed, then take the swim test and go boating." I'm not looking forward to the swim test, it's always a drag. It takes too long and it's too in depth, when we can tell that most of these kids can swim good enough. And I always get the questions from those 13 year old girls about why I wear a swim shirt all the time. I tell them it's not their business to ask. I partly wear it so I don't have to deal with people like that, and also because I have a large amount of tattoos that cover up my ugly scars. They'd stop staring if they knew what I hide underneath my shirts and my skin.

"Do we have to help with the swim test?" Tris questions.

"They want one person from each group to do it, and I'm a lifeguard, so-"

She cuts me off with a wave of her hand, "I'm a lifeguard too, I can do it."

I look at her, really look at her, and I examine her expression. She doesn't seem bothered by the swim test, and I guess she could tell by my voice that I get easily irritated by it. Her blue eyes are rock hard, and her pink lips are set into a thin line. I drag my eyes away from her, to the trees and the rocks and everything else in the background.

"Okay, thanks. I don't look forward to it."

"No problem," she says. "I'll go check in with Max."

"See you in a bit," I say as she turns around and goes to look for where to check in with the camp director. I go to borrow a golf cart for the drive down, and I see Zeke sitting idly in one looking in my direction. He waves, "Are you on traffic duty?"

I nod. "Come on in, and we'll be the car-directing duo," he jokes as he slides over, making room for me to sit. He backs out of the parking space somewhat dangerously, moving too quickly and not looking where he's going. As he jerkily turns us around, I see Tris emerging from the counselors tent with a clipboard and a green flag, flanked by Christina and Will, who are both carrying colored flags as well.

"So did Will choose to greet people or did you force him?" I ask Zeke. Knowing him, he probably did so he could either be with me or Shauna.

"Yeah no, I forced him," he says, thankfully while keeping his eyes on the road, "I was hoping to be doing something with you-"

"Or with Shauna," I cut in.

He looks at me and fakes an apologetic smile, "Yes, you or Shauna. But she's assisting the nurse in the medical exam."

"Well, I'm sure she'd rather be doing that than directing cars."

"Not if I'm involved," Zeke says as we pull up to the front gate. We park the cart so it's almost in the woods, leaving enough space for cars to get by. Basically, we just have to tell the parents to drive in and look for their kids' colored flag. Zeke thankfully remembered the list of programs and their corresponding colors.

There's a security guard in the little booth who will just be checking that they have their registration papers, so we're sure they're all campers and parents.

"So, how's your partner?" he asks me after a brief silence.

"Tris? She's…nice," I say, not really sure what he's asking me.

"Nice? That's it?" He raises his eyebrows and lifts one corner of his mouth.

I roll my eyes, acting nonchalant but inside I'm terrified that he saw through me that quickly. I haven't even sorted my feelings out yet and already I'm obvious? "Yes, she's nice, Zeke. She'll be a good counselor."

He waits for me to say something else, and I'm not going to. He puts his hands up in surrender. "Fine, fine," he says while smiling broadly, "But just one thing. I haven't seen you look at a girl like that in, well, _ever_, Four. Go for it."

I don't respond.

We sit and wait for a few minutes before deciding that one of us should go to the very front of the driveway and make sure people know this is the camp.

"Registration is from 11 to 1, right?" Zeke asks me. It's 10:55 and we don't have anyone yet. It hasn't officially started, but usually there are people lined up to get in by 10:50.

"Yeah. Do you want me to head up to the top, or do you want to take it?" I'd much rather stay down here, because although I don't like talking to people, it's more interesting.

"I'll go ahead, let me just get this," he says, leaning over his seat and fumbling around in the back for something. He emerges with a small white banner that says 'Registration from 11-1!' on it in big block letters.

"Did you make that?" I ask him.

He laughs, "Nah, Marlene made in case we wanted to use it," he gets out of the cart, "Don't leave without me!"

"I won't!" I shout to him as he runs down the path. He turns around and gives a thumbs up just as a red van comes around the corner. The horn blares and Zeke's still running, but the car manages to stop before he slammed right into it. He stops and goes up to the window and hopefully is apologizing.

He gestures towards me and the driver nods and starts coming my way. Zeke gives me a goofy look before turning and hurrying to the entrance. I try to hold in my laughter as the woman gets through security and stops next to me, rolling down her window again. We have to appear professional, even if what just happened was hilarious.

"Good morning!" I start in what hopefully sounded like a cheery tone. "What program is your camper doing?"

The woman turns around and talks to someone in the back seat, presumably the camper, before turning back around and smiling at me. "She's in the water sports adventureish one."

"The water sports program, nice choice! You're going to go straight ahead until you reach a parking lot. Park, get out her stuff, and find the counselor with the green flag," I say, double checking the list of colors, "The counselor will take it all from there," I finish with a smile.

"Great. Thank you!" she says, rolls up her window, and drives slowly away.

After that it gets busier, sometimes with four cars lined up one after the other. I tell people to go to all different flags, but the most popular programs are water sports and high ropes adventure, which I expected.

I count a total of 14 for our group, which means everyone should be here. At around 1:15 Zeke comes around the corner with the banner in hand. He hops in the truck, "I think that's it. We can't let any more in now, anyways."

"Got it," I say, and start to drive us back to main camp, where lunch is probably almost over.

"How many did you count for my program?" Zeke inquires after storing the banner in the back of the cart.

"What program are you doing?" I ask. I didn't really count any specifics other than my group, but I can probably give him an estimate.

"Hiking and nature, we have a red flag."

"I think there were about ten, maybe less. That's a good program for you. Lucky it's not arts and crafts," I say, referencing from the time last year when Zeke and I both got stuck doing the artsy program together.

"I'm not complaining, man. You got a good one too, water sports. I hope I have either that or high ropes at some point." I agree with him on half of that statement. I've never even gone near the high ropes courses, it scares me to even look at it. Thinking about being up that high…no. Not something I want to do, ever.

We pull in to main camp to find all the carts gone and most of the bags already taken to the campsites. I hear a ton of noise coming from the dining hall, and that means they're still having lunch.

Zeke and I park the cart and part ways once we get in the dining hall. The noise is overwhelming, and this is one of the parts I don't like about working here. The constant chatter of little kids.

I find Tris surrounded by kids at a table in the back corner. I tap her on the shoulder and she smiles at me, and asks one of the kids next to her to move down so I can sit. He scooches over far away, and I take my spot next to her.

"How did it go?" I ask her, my voice rising slightly over the incessant conversation.

"Good," she says back loudly, taking a bite of some salad. "We have 14, but none of them seem like too much, though it's a bit early to tell."

I nod. I hope none of the parents gave her any trouble; I'll have to ask later, when we're not surrounded by nosy hear-it-all kids. "Are you going to eat?" she asks, gesturing towards the big buffet table. In the beginning it probably had a full salad bar and a sandwich station, but it's since been ravaged by hungry tweens and now looks like a battle scene. Lettuce and other vegetables are scattered around the floor, dressing is dripping off the edges and they're all out of bread.

"No, I'm good."

"Are you sure?" she pushes.

"It's fine," I assure her. Normally someone getting in to my business like that would annoy me, but I can't seem to get mad at her, no matter what she does, I feel other intense feelings, but none of them are bad. Well that depends on how you look at it, because I'm pretty sure I should not be feeling this way, but I'm not really trying to stop it.

She shrugs and continues eating her salad. The kids start to get antsy, having been here for three hours, some of them, so we decide to head out. Max makes a brief welcoming speech that has all the campers laughing hysterically, and Tris and I round them up so we can get to the swim tests on time.

We both walk in front of the kids, leading them up the paths to Oak Beach so they can change into their suits. "Every once and a while when you're walking, you'll want to do a roll call," I tell her quietly. We gave the kids numbers before we left, and practiced having them shout them out after we said them.

"So we just shout out numbers 1 through 14 and they'll say it back?"

"Yup. As long as nobody forgets their number, it's pretty accurate. You try it," I encourage her.

"Okay," she says quietly to me, then shouts, "Roll call!"

The campers chorus back, and she starts calling out numbers. "One!"

"One!" A girl parrots from the back.

"Two!"

"Two!" This time a boy shouts from the middle of the pack. She gets all the way to 14 without any problems, and she smiles at me. She'll be good at this, she already is.

We reach the camp in no time, and I give instructions. "Okay, so I want everybody to buddy up right now, with someone of the same gender," thankfully we have eight girls and six boys, so it will be even, "Choose somebody you want to spend the next week with," I say. "These will be your swim buddies and also your lean-to mates."

Most of the kids pair up, but four are left standing alone. I point and put them together, pairing two girls together and two boys. We can't have boys sleeping in the same lean-to as girls, camp rules.

"Okay, everybody's got a buddy?" They all nod, "Good. Now I want you your pair to find another pair, again, of the same gender."

They all form groups of four, except for two girls. "You two will get your own lean-to," I say to them. "Everybody good?" They all nod again. "Great. So now you're going to go get your bags, and find a lean-to with your group. Put your stuff on your bed, but don't unpack anything yet. Get changed into your bathing suits and meet in the pavilion," I instruct them. "One more thing…it's a race! On your mark, get set, go!" I shout, and all the kids race to get their stuff and they all find a lean-to successfully, without any drama. The lean-tos are all facing away from the middle, so they can get changed in private.

"I find they go faster if you tell them it's a contest," I whisper to Tris as we make our way to the middle and sit down. "Did you get how I paired them up?" I ask her, and she nods. "Good. It's important to keep the girls and boys separate."

"Got it," she confirms. The first camper, a boy as I predicted, runs out of one of the lean-tos and sits down at a table.

"Did I win?" he asks excitedly.

"Yup, good job!" Tris beats me to it.

"Do I win anything?" he asks eagerly.

I chuckle, "You win the prize of winning the race. You get bragging rights," I tell him. He looks disappointed before looking up and smiling at the next boy coming out of the same lean-to.

"I beat you so bad, Nathan!"

"Yeah, yeah who cares?" the second place boy, Nathan, says. Our group ranges from 11 to 14 agewise, so some of the boys are very immature while others are less immature, but not anywhere near being mature.

Eventually the whole group comes out, with a big gap in between the girls and boys. I nudge Tris, so she can tell them what we're doing next for practice.

"Listen up, guys!" she says loudly, getting their attention before speaking. Good. "Now we're going to go to the lake for swim tests. If it's your first year here and you don't know how they work, we'll explain when we get there. Sound good?"

The campers yell back their agreement, and Tris flashes a beautiful smile. "Let's go then!"

We lead the way down the path again. I do roll call halfway through the walk, and everyone's here. "You're really good at this, you know," Tris whispers.

"I guess, thanks. You're better. Look you got them all excited for a _test_," I smirk.

"Kids like swimming. The test part doesn't count if they get to go in the water," she says. "And the girls probably enjoy looking at a bunch of shirtless boys," she wiggles her eyebrows.

I laugh, "Are you hinting to yourself? Because I won't be giving you that pleasure," I say, realizing that we're almost flirting.

"No, you goof, I wasn't talking about me," she says, and leaves it at that. She doesn't address the me being shirtless part, and I'm both glad and distressed. Could she like me? Do I even like her? I don't know, I'm lost in this swirling mass of feelings and sensations in my mind.

We reach the lake and see one other group there, led by Shauna and Tris's friend Christina. Most of their campers are already in the water, which is good, because it won't be too crowded, and we won't have to wait long.

Tris goes off to get a lifeguard floatie thing, and talk to the lifeguards for this week, who I think are Lauren and a girl named Lynn. I turn around and tell the campers to sit on the wooden logs lined up at the edge of the sand, and that we'll wait for the other group to finish before we start. When they're all seated, I start to explain the tests.

There are three swimming levels, each with their own dock. The campers will get colored bracelets based on which levels they're allowed to go in. Level one is shallow and you can completely touch the bottom without going under. Everyone is permitted in there.

Level two is about five foot six inches deep, so most campers can't touch it, though there are a few who can without going underwater. The test for that level is to swim two laps, to the dock and back, without drowning. Any stroke is fine.

Level three is very deep, so nobody can touch the bottom. The campers will have to swim four laps and tread water for two minutes to be allowed in.

Tris emerges from the hut wearing a black one piece, carrying a red life guard float. Yesterday she wore a two piece, when we cleaned the beach, but I guess her bathing suit today is more appropriate, although I do wish she wore the other one. But it's good that I won't get as distracted, but she looks good in everything she wears.

She talks to Lauren and then walks to the second level swimming dock, and sits at the edge, putting her feet in the water. Christina sees her and waves, and they get together and start talking animatedly. Thankfully Shauna, Christina's partner, is the one doing the lifeguarding, so none of the kids drown while the two girls are gossiping.

Shauna's group finishes quickly and they all get out of the water and dry off. I take four of my campers and tell them to go in the second section and get instructions from Tris, Lauren, and Lynn.

I'm glad Tris did the lifeguarding part, because the water is freezing. Hopefully she won't have to go in, though. Normally everyone's fine.

* * *

**A/N:** Thanks for reading! This isn't a cliff hanger, and nobody's going to drown, I just had to end. Again I wanted to get this up quickly, so I didn't proof read as well as I could have…sorry if there are any big mistakes. Please leave a review!


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: ** Sorry this took so long! I was sick (again) and I have two HUGE summer reading books for AP world history and english honors that I just started reading. I want to update two times a week and I'm really going to try. Please read the note at the bottom, I need your feedback on something :)

* * *

**Chapter 7**

_**Tris **_

After I change into my bathing suit and grab some lifeguarding gear, I talk to Lauren, the head life guard, to find out what I should do. "Are you the guard from water sports?" she asks me.

I nod, and she looks disappointed. "But you're with Four, right?" I nod again. "He usually does it," her voice turns sour and her face screws up in displeasure.

"Well, he wasn't looking forward to it so I said I'd do it for him. What do I have to do?" I try to stay polite, even though she's really getting on my nerves. She obviously has a thing for Four and she's disappointed that it's me here. I'm just as capable as he is, if that's her problem.

She huffs, before gesturing towards the docks where Christina, Shauna, and Lynn are currently watching the kids do their tests, "Go over there and talk to Lynn, she'll explain it if you don't know what to do."

"Okay, thank you," I say nicely, and walk over to the docks. I hear her mutter something under her breath but I can't make out any words. The sand shifts under my feet as I step up onto the wet docks, and I carefully go over to Christina and sit down next to her.

"Hey! How's it going with the kids so far?" she asks, swinging her feet back and forth over the edge, making ripples in the water and occasionally splashing up at us.

"Pretty good, actually. You?" I swing my feet over the edge too, but my legs are too short to reach the water.

"Great! Shauna's really nice, I got lucky. I just hope that next week I'm with you, or Will," she says.

"Yeah, Four's nice too, and he's great with the kids," I say, failing to hold back a smile at the thought of him.

Christina gives me a knowing look, of which I ignore, and doesn't push me again on the subject. "But he seems so quiet," she points out after a few seconds silence.

"Yeah, he's quiet, but he's a whole different person around the campers. I swear, it's amazing," I say truthfully. No matter how distant he may seem around people his own age, he's really in to talking with the younger ones.

"Really?" Christina asks, astonished, "I don't think I've heard him say more than five words, ever."

"He talks to me, sometimes. And like I said, he talks with the kids."

A whistle is blown behind us, and we hear the sound of feet hitting wood and water sloshing under the now-swaying docks. "Christina!" someone calls.

"Be right there, Shauna!" Chris turns around and hollers. "That's my cue, I have to go. Back into nature," she fakes a gag. "See you at dinner?"

I nod and wave as she gets up, "See you at dinner." I turn back to the beach to see the first four campers getting into the water slowly. Lauren, who still looks irritated, blows her whistle loudly and yells something at the straggling swimmers who are still wading slowly. They all dive under the rope and swim to one side of section two, as Lynn gives them instructions. They all nod when she's done and she blows her whistle, making the campers begin swimming. She walks over to me, keeping an eye on the swimmers at the same time

"You remember how this works, right? I'll give the instructions and you just make sure nobody's drowning," she says curtly.

"Okay, yeah I know what to do."

"Good," she says as she walks to the other end, shouting and encouraging the campers to finish their laps. All four of them make it successfully, and they climb up the ladder and over the dock into the next level as four more campers enter level two.

Lynn shouts instructions to the level two group first, and then informs the level three group of what they'll be doing. I watch level two while she watches level three, and again, everybody makes it.

We get through the tests quickly, and all the sudden we're on the last group. Four girls, about 12 or 13 years old, swim to level three, and after being briefed by Lynn, start swimming. A firey haired girl leads the pack, followed shortly by two blondes. Another redhead brings up the rear, going significantly slower than the rest. She's halfway done with her first lap when the other girls pass her, and that trend continues until they're all done and she's on her third lap. She slows down and her arms barely get out of the water, and I hurry over.

"I'm done!" she says loudly, struggling for breath, her head almost going under again. I waste no time in reassuring her that she's safe and putting the float within her reach. She grabs on to it, heaving for breath, and I drag her to the ladder. She gets out and sits down on the dock, leaving a splatter of water around her.

The girl puts her head in her hands, shaking her curly locks slightly. Then I remember her from earlier. I think her name is Arden, and the girl who's hair matches hers is her twin. They're identical, and they look exactly like their mother, who I met during check in. Arden was quiet in the back, and her twin who's name I can't remember was loud and rambunctious, immediately running up to all of her friends excitedly.

I bend down next to Arden, putting my hand on her back, "Arden, right?" I confirm, and she nods, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," she says quietly.

She doesn't look okay, at all, but if it's not medical she doesn't _have_ to tell me about it. I don't want to push her to talk to me, but I think I know what's going on here: the overbearing sibling. A problem in which I have a lot of experience.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I ask, sitting down next to her and trying to look through her hair, which has fallen over her face.

She shakes her head and stays quiet, only making the occasional wet sniffle. I look behind me and see the rest of the group drying off and sitting on the logs, with Four looking over here curiously. There's no way I'll be able to get him to understand me from here, so I just use my hands to tell him to go ahead. I'll meet them at the changing tents, I just need to let Arden calm down first.

"You don't need to stay here," she says shakily a little while after Four left with the rest of the campers.

"I need to make sure you're okay, I can't leave you alone out here. Let's go talk on the beach, okay?" The next group is coming in, and I think they're waiting for us to leave before they start.

She nods slightly and I lead her to the beach. I get her towel from a log and hand it to her as we sit down. She dries off in silence, wrapping the towel around her wiry frame. Arden looks out to the lake, her eyes glistening.

"It's just…I wanted to prove to her that I could do it," she says. I have a feeling as to who the 'her' is, but I wait for her to go on. "Aria, I mean. My sister. All of her friends are on the swim team, and she bet me that I wouldn't get into the third level. And she was right," she finishes with a long sigh.

"You're twins, right?" I ask and she nods. "Well, believe it or not, I actually understand your situation."

"You're a twin too?" her head snaps to mine, a hopeful look in her emerald eyes.

"Well, no, but my brother is only a few months older than me, so we were in the same grade at school. He was so smart, in all the advanced classes. He's a scientist now," I say, smiling at the thought. I haven't seen Caleb in a while, because he got into an early acceptance program at some college across the country, so he left during senior year. "Anyways, he was considered the smart one. I was always a step behind, even though I was pretty smart too. I was always compared to him, he was like this shadow over my whole life.

"But when I got into high school, I realized that we didn't have to do the same things. He likes science, so what? I like reading and writing. I started taking classes on the creative track, and did a lot of art. People stopped comparing me to him, after a while, and I became my own person," I smile and look over at Arden, who is watching me with a small frown. Her eyes are dry, and full of frustration instead of sadness.

"But I don't know what I want to do. My whole family swims, and I just hate it!" she curls her hands up into fists, then relaxes them, "I'm not any good at it, either," she says in a softer tone.

I touch her shoulder, "You don't _have_ to be good at swimming. And you don't have to know what you're good at yet, either. Okay? Come on, let's go get changed and then we can go boating."

She nods and we head down to the changing tents after grabbing our bags. "But, Tris?" she asks, somewhat hesitantly.

"Yeah?"

"I don't really have any friends," she says weakly, looking at her feet again.

"Well, you're in luck, then, because you're in the right place. That's what camp is for, making new friends and new memories. One of the other counselors here was my best friend at camp, and we still hang out a lot today."

"I don't think any of them like me," she presses on.

"Have you tried talking to them? Don't worry, it'll happen, I promise. And you've already made one friend today."

Her brow furrows and she looks at me with confusion, "Who?"

I smile, "Me."

* * *

Arden and I get to the docks right when Four finishes explaining about boats and groups. He's set out the life vests and paddles, and I feel a bit guilty that he did all this work and I just made friends with one camper. He catches my eyes and looks relieved, flashing me a rare smile. I quickly explain everything to Arden and encourage her to meet new kids. She goes over to where the kids are all pairing up in groups, as Four comes over to me.

"Hey, sorry about that. I didn't intend for it to take so long," I apologize.

"No, it's fine! I have it under control, for the most part. Is she okay?" He asks, concerned.

"Yeah, just sister problems," I answer quietly, not wanting anyone to hear. He nods in understanding and we walk over to where the campers are assembled. There are four groups of three and one group of two. Perfect. I see Arden with two other girls, and they appear to be getting along. I'm glad I was able to help her.

We assign each of them a brightly colored boat, show them how to put on the life vests, hand out paddles, and get them in the water without any problems. They can have the whole lake, and we'll be out for an hour. Four and I will be on the water too, but we'll go back in a bit early to start calling them in.

Once their all out we strap on the life vests and get the last two paddles. The only boat left is a small red canoe, with paint peeling on the sides.

Four chuckles as we push it towards the water, "I can see why they didn't pick this one."

"And why is that?" I joke, seeing cobwebs underneath one of the seats.

"They're too young to appreciate the historical value," he says. We wade into the water, up to my knees and his calves, and he holds it steady while I get in.

"And what exactly is that?" I ask him when he's situated in the little seat, facing me. He shrugs his shoulders in response and we both start laughing. We pick up our paddles and try to get in rhythm, but he's so much stronger than me we start going back to the shore.

"You need to paddle backwards!" I shriek as I'm almost impaled by a rock. I turn around to see Four smiling smugly at me. I fumble for words when I notice his muscles shifting under golden skin as he starts to row.

"Are you going to help?" he asks mockingly, shaking my thoughts from his body.

I laugh and pick up my row wordlessly, and start to paddle. I watch as it disappears into the water, making ripples and waves, and comes out again bringing droplets of murky lake water.

"Somehow we're going _slower_," Four says, bringing my attention back to him. It almost sounds like he's flirting with me, but I refuse to believe that. Nobody would want to flirt with me, and besides, I don't even know what flirting _is_. This is just…banter.

"I'll just relax then," I pull my paddle out of the water, making sure to splash him, and put it across the middle of the boat.

He wipes the drops off his cheek with his hand, flashing a bright smile. My heart flutters and I feel butterflies in the pit of my stomach. I'm getting too attached to him. I've never had my heart flutter before, besides palpitations during anxiety attacks, but that's because of fear. Not…love.

I fakely smile back, leaning back and crossing my legs. Four just shakes his head and starts paddling again. I look out at the lake, and count all five boats. Some of the boys are having races, and the girls are looking at lily pads in one corner near the shore.

When we get to the middle of the lake, Four puts his paddle down next to mine and sits back, shutting his eyes.

I look around quickly to make sure none of the campers are watching, then stand up slowly and start to rock my weight back and forth, making waves in a circle around the canoe.

Four's eyes open and he puts his hands on the side of the boat to steady himself, looking at me and biting his lip, probably trying not to smile. His eyes flick to mine before he reaches forward and grabs my wrists, pulling me down. His face is only inches from mine, and I can't bring my eyes away from his. They're a fascinating color, matching the water, and I'm entranced just like when I first met him, only yesterday. It feels like years.

"Stay down," he says with a quirk of his eyebrows. He's still holding on to my wrists, and doesn't let go until I agree to sit for the rest of the ride.

"Good," he says, his voice a low rumble. We both pick up and start to paddle again. We wander around the lake, occasionally racing campers and splashing each other, until it's time to go back in.

* * *

**A/N: **Please leave a review to let me know if you liked it! I didn't proofread this, so if there are any mistakes my apologies. I have two things to ask you:

So in this chapter I talked quite a bit about Arden and her twin Aria. I don't plan on delving into the camper's lives too much, as the counselors are the focus of this story. I personally don't like OC's but it has to be done a little bit since they have a ton of campers under their control. Is it okay with you guys if I include a tiny tiny bit of camper? Let me know if you want more or less.

Okay, this isn't really a question regarding my fic, but my writing. It's pretty much an insecurity…I want to be a writer some day, so I write as much as I can to improve. I guess I'm asking if you guys think I'm good, like honestly. OK longest AN ever but I'm done, thank you for reading!


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: **Sorry for the wait! I'm going to Disney World soon and I need to finish my summer reading books before then, so I've been reading The Odyssey. I was going to update yesterday, but then Taylor Swift released her new song and I spent an obscene amount of time listening to it.

P.S. the songs in here are both from my camp when I was younger, but the second one is called Rainbow Made of Children, and it's from the movie Billie Jack. I give all credit to whoever wrote it.

* * *

**Chapter 8**

_**Four**_

After getting everyone out of the water and putting the boats away, Tris and I lead our group to the dining hall, where some people have already started eating. It's so noisy – with not even half the groups in here – I have to lean over to Tris so she can hear me.

"Where we sit now decides our table for the rest of the week," I remind her, "So do you have any preferences?"

The kids behind us are getting antsy to sit and eat, so she shakes her head and I lead us to a table in the back corner, closest to the bathrooms and also the exit. One of the kitchen staff hurries over and places a miniature green flag on the table, to mark it as ours. "The food will be out shortly," she informs us with a smile, eliciting a cheer from the campers.

Tris and I are seated in the middle of the table, flanked by hungry campers chatting loudly about the fun activities to come. I don't feel comfortable discussing our plans right next to all the kids, but none of them are paying us any attention. "So, after dinner they're doing a show down at the Pit," I say, referring to the half circle theater area that's sunken into the ground, "And we have to sing."

Her eyes widen, and a flush rises in her cheeks. "I forgot about that part of the job! I don't know if I remember any of the songs," she worries nervously, biting the inside of her cheek.

"Trust me, if you heard those songs even once you'll remember them for a lifetime. But they have the words if you need them," I reassure her. I was equally worried for the singing part, but I learned to not care about it and put up with the whole camp laughing at us while we struggle to stay together.

"Okay," she relents, "But I'm not looking forward to it."

I laugh, "Nobody is, except the campers." Without us noticing, the room filled up. All the tables are full with kids wearing bright colors, and neon green clad staff members scattered throughout.

Then the kitchen doors slam open, and the most wonderful smells waft off the plates of food that are put at every table. Tonight's dinner is chicken tenders, peas, and mashed potatoes, with choice of lemonade or water.

Tris and I instruct nobody to touch the food before we count it – so everyone has equal portions – and start passing it around. I send the chicken going one way, telling the campers to each grab two, and Tris sends the peas around the other. We both take our share of mashed potatoes and start those around the table as well. Tris and I get up from our seats, holding the pitchers of drinks in our hands.

"Raise your hand if you want water," Tris says loudly, and a few campers raise their hands. She pours them water while I pour everyone else lemonade. We sit down and see the plates back in the middle. Tris pours us both water after asking me if I'd like some, and we take our chicken and peas.

Max appears at the front of the room, and all the counselors immediately hold up a hand to signal for the campers to be quiet, and follow suit. Soon everybody has their hands in the air, and Max smiles and tells us to put them down.

"Welcome," he booms, "To week one of Angel's Lake, Summer 2014!"

Everyone cheers and claps, and Max waits for us to quiet down before continuing. "To kick things off, we'll be having a starter show in the Pit when you're all done eating. Then you'll go back to your campsites, perhaps you'll start a fire, and you'll go over your plans for the week with your counselors. Sound good?"

Everybody nods in response, and Max smiles and disappears into the kitchen. We go back to eating and the noise level shoots back up. Tris and I finish eating first, and we remind the campers how to put away their food.

"Everybody, listen up!" I get their attention, and our table quiets down. I'm glad this group is good at listening, unlike some of my others in the past. "When you're done eating, you're going to go over to the counter and put away your dishes. First you pour out your drinks and scrape off remaining food into the garbage. Then you put the silverware and plates in the appropriate piles, and you'll come right back to sit here."

"There's no dessert?"A young boy pipes up from one end.

"Tonight we're having a campfire, so we'll be eating dessert back there," I assure him before getting up to put away my dishes.

Tris follows, and starts the process of cleaning up. I don't have any food to clean up off my plate – I ate it all – but Tris scrapes off what looks to be all of her peas.

"So you're not one for vegetables?" I ask her jokingly as I put away my fork and spoon.

She blushes and busies herself with pouring out her water, "No, I just hate peas. But as a counselor I can't not take the vegetables, that would set a bad example."

"It's a mystery how you're so skinny," I joke. She gives me a look before laughing, and I wait for her to finish putting her plate away before walking back to the table together.

The campers eventually finish eating and go to clean up, joining the long line of campers from other groups. We instruct them to go to the bathroom if they need to, because there are only latrines after we go to our campsite.

Once everyone's set we take the short walk to the Pit, and Tris and I get the campers situated in the middle rows before leaving them to go do the show. The other staff members who aren't counselors, like the lifeguards and art people, watch them for us.

The "stage" is basically a wooden platform with a little house behind it, which is like the backstage. Everyone's currently reading up on song lyrics, and trying to remember the little dances that go along with some of them. The funny part is, that we're not allowed to practice together before. As the summer goes along, we get better, but the first show is always hilarious.

Tris picks up a song book from the table, and starts reading it quickly. We can hear Max outside warming the audience up and making jokes, so it's not long before we go on. She puts the book down and sighs, making her way to me through the crowded room.

"You don't have to sing loudly," I tell her. "Only a few people actually sing," I jerk my head to Zeke and his brother who are in the midst of a lively conversation, "So we can just half-ass it. But you do have to dance, and with a lot of energy."

Tris nods and smiles just as Max calls us out. The door opens and we all file out, getting into a horizontal line facing the campers. They all cheer as Max announces the first song. That's another element of surprise, too. We don't know which songs we have to sing. It makes for a funny show but it's also a mechanism to make sure we know all of them, as it's part of our job requirements.

I brush Tris's hand with mine and give her a little smile as Max announces the first song – one of my favorites, called "Pizza Hut." unfortunately, we have to dance.

Zeke abruptly starts off, and everyone rushes to join in afterwards. "_Dunkin_ Donuts, _Dunkin_ Donuts," he sings with Uriah, the two of them stomping their feet and clapping their hands on the first part, "A Pizza Hut, a Pizza Hut," we all sing as we make a circle with our hands in front of us, "A Taco Bell, a Taco Bell," we shake our hips and try to mime ringing a bell, much to the campers' amusement, "Mcdonalds! Mcdonalds!" We make an 'm' with our hands above our heads and sing in shrill voices.

We all repeat the same verse again, and I sneak a glance at Tris. She's quietly singing, or maybe mouthing the words, but she's doing the gestures all out, but not above and beyond, like some counselors are.

"A Barbie doll, a Barbie doll," the guys sing and pretend to flick our hair, "A G.I. Joe, a G.I. Joe," the girls chorus in deep voices, making guns with their hands, "A hula hoop, a hula hoop," everyone sings together and swings their hips, "A skateboard! A skateboard!" We jump sideways and pretend to skate.

We all finish laughing along with the campers. The rest of the show goes pretty much like that, there are a lot of high energy songs with catchy tunes and hilarious dances. Max always ends the show with a slower song, so he announces the last song, "Rainbow Made of Children,"and we all straighten up our line and begin to sing.

"We're a rainbow, made of children. We're an army, just singing our song. There's no weapon, that can stop us! Rainbow love is, much too strong." I'm surprised to hear a voice other than Zeke or Uriah's, and I turn my head slightly and see that it's Tris. She has a beautiful soprano voice, floating above all the others. It's so soft, but so strong.

"I was born in Mississippi, saying yes sir to all the men. But I found that it got me nowhere, so I'll never say it again," the girls split up into harmony and melody during the last part, and Tris's voice stands out even more. I just quietly sing along an octive lower.

"I was taught that black was evil, I was taught that white was good. But when you become a rainbow, all the colors are understood," I can't stop looking at Tris while she sings. She stands perfectly straight, her hands behind her back, and her eyes focused straight ahead. Her expression is serious, but there's a certain happiness that lights up in her eyes. She's beautiful.

"I'm a girl scout with many sisters, there are girl guides all over the world. We have fun and lots of laughter, come and join us, anytime." We sing the chorus one more time, and the crowd erupts in cheer. I touch Tris's shoulder, guiding her back inside with the rest of the counselors. We hear Max telling the campers to stay put until we come back to them, and he keeps them occupied with funny jokes.

"Tris," I say, getting her attention. "That was amazing."

"It is fun, isn't it?" she smiles, totally unaware of how wonderful she is. _Beautiful._

"Not the show, _you._ You have an amazing voice, Tris, what were you afraid of?" I put my other hand on her shoulder, making sure she doesn't turn away from me.

"I'm not amazing," she says quietly.

I remove my hands from her shoulders, and bring one below her chin, lifting up her face to mine. My fingertips tingle at where they touch her neck. "Yes, you are," I retort. "Now come on, the campers are waiting."

I turn away breathless, taking her hand and leading her to the door. She doesn't need any help navigating the room, of course, I just want to touch her. Her small hand fits perfectly in mine, but I have to let her go once we get outside.

The air is cool and the bugs are out already. The sun is sinking below the treeline and we have to hurry up to get to camp if we don't want to set up a fire in the dark.

We do a quick role call then lead everyone back to the site. I use my big lantern to lead the way, and some campers have their own flashlights they use to illuminate the ground, so they don't trip on roots or rocks.

When we get to the campsite, I tell them to get into warmer clothes if they want, and to get sticks both for the fire and for roasting marshmallows.

Tris and I go back to our lean-to after we make sure the campers know what they're doing. She slips on sweatpants and a sweatshirt, and I just put on a long sleeved shirt over my camp one.

I grab the matches and the fire starters from the pavilion, and Tris gets the s'more materials from the box of food.

Some of the campers are already sitting on the logs around the fire pit, their sticks put carelessly around the edge. I arrange them in a tent fashion, with the smaller ones in the middle and the larger ones making a teepee-like shape on top. I start lighting matches; we're only supposed to use fire starters if we really can't get it going. I can always get mine going strong, unless it's just rained and the wood is wet. But it seems to be dry tonight.

After two tries I get the tinder lighting, and I blow on it so the larger logs start to burn. I sit back on the log to see all the campers sitting around the fire, warming their hands and feet and talking quietly to friends. Tris asks if everyone ones a s'more, and there's a chorus of 'yes's from everybody. She passes out marshmallows, graham crackers, and chunks of chocolate for everyone. They all have sticks for roasting, and they all get to work on their marshmallows immediately.

Tris gives me my materials too, and she sits down and puts her marshmallow on her stick, putting it just above the flames.

"Shoot, I forgot a stick," I tell her quietly.

She smiles at me, "I know. I got you one," she pulls a stick off the ground and hands it to me.

I thank her and put my marshmallow on, and I put it right into the flames.

"Four, you burn yours?" a boy named Jason asks incredulously from across the fire.

"Yes. I could ask the same for you. Why toast?" I tease. This starts a riot, campers trying to explain why their way is better.

"Alright, Alright! Let's settle this. Each team, Burn and Toast, pick one person to make another s'more. Tris will taste both and decide which one is better.

"Why me?" Tris questions loudly.

"Because you're impartial," I answer her with a smirk.

"You said you didn't care, so now you're the judge!" Jason shouts, followed by a chorus of cheers.

"Okay, fine. Hurry up and cook those, I'm getting tired!" Both teams elected boys, and the two campers race to grab marshmallows and start them. The boy from the Burn team, Andy, finishes his quickly after lighting the whole thing on fire. He makes a s'more and hands it to Tris.

She eats it quickly, somehow managing to not get any on her face. Both teams pester her for her thoughts, but she declines and says she won't say anything until she's had both.

A few minutes later Jason presents her with his, and she eats that one quickly and mess-free, too.

"Who won?" Jason shouts after sitting back down, on the edge of his seat.

"Yeah, pick!" Andy calls out.

She pretends to think about it, dragging the process out. "Come on, Tris! You're killing us," I say.

"I've come to my decision! I like it better…Toasted!" She says with a smile, causing an equal amount of cheers and groans from the kids.

I lean close to her, my lips brushing her ear, "You chose wrong. And you _will_ pay."

"Oh, I'm so scared," she says sarcastically.

"You should be," I say seriously, biting my cheek to keep from smiling at her adorable expression.

* * *

**A/N: **Thank you for reading! Can we get to 100 favorites? I love all of you, please review! *As always, I was lazy and didn't thoroughly edit, sorry for any mistakes!


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: **As always, thanks for the support! This may be the last update in a while; my friends' birthdays are this weekend as well as my mom's. I'm going to Disney World on the 26th (so pumped) so I'll try to squeeze in another update before then but I'll be super busy. If not I'll be back in September :)

*I started putting dates at the beginning of each chapter and after page breaks because I'll be skipping around a tiny bit. The day to day would be too boring, so we'll be focusing on certain parts.

* * *

**Chapter 9**

**Tuesday, July 1**

_**Tris **_

I wake to the sun filtering through my mosquito net. It's just above the treeline, which means it's still pretty early. I put on my sweatpants and slip on my shoes, before looking to see if Four's still asleep.

He's on his stomach, all curled up in his sheets. He looks so much younger and peaceful when he sleeps, so I debate waking him up but decide that I need his help to wake up everyone in time.

I push the mosquito net out of the way, fixing my bed slightly, and walk softly over to his bed. I sit down on the bare mattress in the middle and reach my hand across to his shoulder and shake it gently. "Four," I whisper loudly.

He doesn't move. "Four," I repeated. I take my hand off his shoulder when he starts to move around. "Wake up," I tell him again. He sits up and rubs his eyes wearily.

"What time is it?" He asks groggily.

"It's seven thirty," I answer after checking my watch. "So we get them up at eight, right?"

He nods and yawns. "We're eating at the hall today, so no fire."

"Got it. I'm going to go wash up, okay? Don't fall back asleep," I tease. I hop off the raised lean-to after grabbing my toiletries. The dew seeps into my shoes, making me wiggle my toes in discomfort as I walk to the spicket.

I get the water started after a few pumps, and I try to brush my teeth as quietly as I can because some of the lean-tos are only a few feet away. I hurry over to the woods to spit, and rinse my mouth out with some more spicket water when I'm done.

My hair is already a bit dirty, but we don't get shower time until tomorrow. I brush it to get the tangles out and put it in a sloppy bun.

I use the latrines quickly, thankful the whole time that they don't smell too bad, and when I emerge Four is already done washing up and he's sitting back in our lean-to.

"What's the plan for today?" I ask him in a hushed tone. I know we're doing something with tubing later in the afternoon, but Four is the one who has the full schedule.

"Right after breakfast we have arts and crafts - I told Marlene to do whatever she wants project-wise -, then we go swimming and we have the whole afternoon to have the kids go tubing or water skiing-"

"Wait, do we have to drive the boats?" I interrupt.

"No, no, they got the lifeguards to do that. One of us has to stay on shore because they can't take all of them on two boats at once, and the other has a chance to go tubing or waterskiing," he explains. "Do you want to try it?"

"I think so, but I don't want to hold you back if you want to," I say honestly. I'm a bit apprehensive and if I do decide to go, I'd like to watch someone else go first.

He smiles and looks down at his lap. "We can switch off if you'd like."

"Yeah, that sounds good. You can go first, though," I suggest.

"Are you afraid?" He asks with a smile while pulling his bag from under his bed and taking off his sweatshirt. The movement momentarily distracts me; he's not wearing anything underneath it. My eyes catch on his toned chest and muscular abs. I see a tiny bit of black that appears to be a tattoo on the side of his ribcage but he whips on his green camp tee and my eyes snap back to his face. I don't think he caught me looking; good.

"Um, not really. I want to see someone go first," I stutter.

He meets my eyes and gives me a crooked smile, making butterflies erupt in the bottom of my stomach. "You're the cautious type, I get it," he stands up after knotting his laces. "I'll get out so you can change."

Before I can say anything he swiftly exits. I change quickly, keeping my back turned from the opening but making sure to look out too. I'm thankful again that they're designed facing away from the other ones, so we have privacy.

I put on a pair of tan shorts and my neon camp shirt. I keep my hair in a bun for now, and put on some bug spray and deodorant.

I meet Four in the middle of the camp, and we both make our rounds and start waking up the campers.

I try to wake them up by standing outside their lean-tos and telling them loudly that it's morning. That works with most of th boys, but with the girls I have to pick up sticks and rocks from the ground and bang them on the posts of the lean-tos.

I tell them to get dressed and remind them that we'll be heading down to breakfast shortly.

They meet us in the pavilion, and we all go down to the dining hall to eat. Breakfast is good, as usual, and it's also quiet since most of the groups are eating at their campsites on the first morning.

When everyone's done eating we do a quick roll call and bring them up to the arts and crafts lodge, where Marlene is waiting for us. "Hey, guys! Come and have a seat and I'll explain what we'll be doing," she greets the campers. They all surge forward and sit at the picnic tables where various supplies is laid out.

Four and I stand off to the side and listen to Marlene, "Okay, so today we're going to be weaving baskets with paper! I cut up lots of colorful strips of construction paper so take a minute or two to pick out a bunch, and we'll get started when you're ready," she finishes. The campers start picking out paper, the boys are not so excited to be here but I'm sure weaving baskets is fun for everyone.

Marlene walks over to us once she's got them started weaving. "Hey you guys don't need to stay if you don't want to. You can come and pick them up at ten."

I look to Four who looks to me. "Do you want to go? What would we do?" I ask.

"All up to you. We could go over the schedule for the week, if you want. We also need to pick up some more camp supplies, but I can do that later."

I mull over it for a minute, and decide it would be nice to get out for a bit. "Yeah, okay. You sure you've got it under control?" I make sure Marlene will be okay with all the kids to herself. They're between the ages of 10 and 14, so they're not too bad.

"Oh yeah, I'm fine! You guys go ahead, I'll keep them entertained."

"Cool, thanks Mar," Four thanks her as we leave. I feel a pang in my chest after he was so familiar with her. Does he know her? Does he _like_ her? Whatever, it doesn't matter because he can like whoever he wants. I thought she was with Uriah, but I don't know for sure.

"Where do you want to go?" Four asks me after we've reached main camp.

"Uh, somewhere quiet and peaceful. Secluded," I request. I want to enjoy nature and how beautiful it is out here.

He smiles, "I know just the place. You up for a little hike?"

I give him a wary look, "What's your definition of little?" We can't go too far because we don't have that much time.

"Oh, it's less than a mile, don't worry. Come on," he leads the way to a small opening in the woods. There's a little dirt trail that's barely wide enough for one person to walk on.

"Is this one of the trails? I don't remember it," I ask him as we walk further in. I loved hiking here as a kid, and I knew all the trails by heart.

"It's not officially one, no. Only a few people know about it, including me. And now you," he looks back to me as he talks slightly.

The woods thicken, and I start to hear faint running water. The only other sounds in this forest are our footsteps and the wind in the trees. The path gets thinner, somehow, and it goes uphill.

"Are we almost there?" I pant. I'm in perfectly good shape, but this is a huge hill and Four's legs are two times the length of mine so I'm practically running to keep up with his larger strides.

He turns around, amused, and walks backwards. Somehow not tripping on any roots, he teases, "What, you're that out of shape?"

"You're walking way to fast," I say after the hill's leveled out. The rushing water is louder now, so loud it almost drowns out the sound of our voices. I don't see any water, and I'm just about to ask him about it when I see it.

There's big cliff off to the left, jagged and rocky. A beautiful waterfall rushes off the side, flowing into a stream that is mostly concealed by the trees.

"It's beautiful," I say to myself. I can't tear my eyes away from the crystal clear water shining in the sunlight. "How does nobody know this is out here?"

Four shrugs, putting his hands in his pockets. "It's way into the woods, in the opposite direction of the developed camp. It's too hilly out here for any buildings."

"But why isn't this a trail? The kids would love this!" I exclaim.

He gives me another lop-sided smile, "That's it. The kids would love it, and they wouldn't leave it alone. It's private, and it's secluded. It wouldn't be if everyone knew about it."

"Oh. I get it."

Four smiles again, and he stretches his hand out. "Come on," he says. I put my hand in his, and he leads me closer to the waterfall. He hops over the edge of the river, and for a split second I think he just jumped in but then I see him standing on a rock that's barely elevated over the water level.

I crouch and slowly slide in. The rock is a little bit slippery, being so smooth from years of erosion, and my feet can't grip it when I land. I fall into warm arms.

"I got you," he says, putting me back on my feet. He releases my hand and sits down, pulling out his backpack and getting out his clipboard.

We go over the schedule for a few minutes, and we still have some time to spare. I shut my eyes and lean back, using my bag as a pillow, and I enjoy the relaxing sounds of the water.

I hear Four shuffling around a bit, and his hand brushes mine, sending flames up and down my arm. I struggle to keep my eyes closed, but I need to relish this moment where I'm kind of alone, enjoying nature.

I open my eyes a few minutes later, feeling very relaxed. I stretch and dip my hands in the water, and I look over at Four to find his eyes on me, a small smile on his lips.

"What?" I ask, a smile bending my mouth.

He shakes his head, "You're just…nevermind."

"What? You have to tell me," I press.

"Nah, it's not important," he checks his watch, "We have to go back."

I stand up and climb out of the river with his help, and the whole way to the arts lodge we're silent. I wonder what just happened between us, did I do something wrong?

Four seems more tense than usual, and I can't help but wonder what he was about to say.

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry this is so short! Next time we'll do the water sports, and that will be fun. What do you think he was going to say to Tris? Tell me in a review!


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: **I'M BACK! (sorry this is so late at night) So I was in disney world for a week, which was amazing, and then I've had school since Thursday, so I apologize for not updating sooner but I had a ton of back to school tests and I was at my mom's this weekend. If you haven't seen this yet, _go check out my schedule on my profile!_ (I meant to update yesterday but things got in the way…)This story will be updated on Mondays and Fridays, and I've got two new projects out soon!

* * *

**Chapter 10**

**Tuesday, July 1**

_**Four**_

_Stupid._ I was lost in thought, caught up in the moment. Didn't think about what was coming out of my damn mouth. "You're so beautiful," I almost said to her. It's the truth, not some empty compliment you pay someone who's having a bad day. I meant it, wholly, but I'm astonished at how inappropriate I can be in the blink of an eye when I let my control go away.

We went swimming with the campers, well, Tris did while I sat on the beach and made small talk with Uriah, who's group was swimming with ours. I need to keep my distance from her, as much as possible this week. I'm becoming careless, and letting my emotions get in the way of my work. It's not like I don't like her, because I clearly do, but too much. I'm leaving this state, maybe this whole country, soon, as soon as possible, after this summer. The more distance I keep from people, the less damage I'll do when I leave.

We eat a quick lunch, Tris sits on the other side of the table and I can tell I've hurt her, somehow. Her eyes meet mine and I ignore the punch in the gut that comes with her confused look and quick retreat to the bathroom. We take them to the lake again, when everyone's done, for water sports. Everyone's already in their bathing suits, so we split up in half, and with kids this age it ends up being boys and girls separate. I lead the boys to the logs to sit down and watch, much to their dismay, the girls will go first with Tris.

She comes over to me, a change in her whole demeanor – right down to her walk, which is more timid than it was hours before, before I messed up – and sets down her towel next to me. "I'll go out first, with the girls, then you'll take the boys?"

"Yeah," I say, swallowing hard. "Listen, Tris-"

She takes of her shoes and shirt, leaving her in a flattering one-piece. "It's fine, Four. Nothing even happened," she says with a flippant wave of her hand. She tries to act nonchalant about how I've been acting around her since this morning, but the crack in her voice and the hurt behind her eyes when they break away from mine are obvious giveaways that she's not completely okay.

I sigh, running a hand through my hair. She turns to go, but I call out to her, "Tris! Can we talk later?" She nods, and relief floods through my body. At least I didn't completely screw this thing up, whatever it is.

I watch as she rounds up the girls, after they take off their cover ups and get life vests, and get in the large boat with the lifeguard. After taking a vote we decided that we'd only be tubing today, and save the water skiing for another time. They hook up two tubes to the back of the boat, making sure they're secure. Two girls hop in to them, getting on their stomachs and holding tight onto the handles. After they give the thumbs up, the boat goes out on the lake.

It rounds the corner, going out of view, and comes back seconds later, rapidly picking up speed. The girls' laughter floats across the lake, and my eyes search for Tris in the crowded boat. I find her in the back, talking – more like yelling - to the girls currently tubing. Her hair is whipping behind her in the wind, and she has a carefree smile on her lips.

They go for a few more trips around the lake, giving all the girls a turn. The last two to go are Tris and one of the redheads, since there are odd numbers one of them has to go with their counselor. The boat comes back to shallow water, so they can switch off, and Tris gets in.

I find myself getting nervous when I see them pick up speed. It's not a very dangerous thing to do, sure, with live vests and all, but the thought of Tris getting hurt sends a pang through my heart.

I'm being completely ridiculous, because I've only known this girl for a day and I'm far too attached. I make myself talk with some of the boys, so I don't look at her anymore, but I catch a piece of her joyful laugh when the boat swings by us, and I impulsively look out at the lake.

She's bumping over the crests behind the boat, and flying up in the air for a few seconds at a time. It's the happiest I've seen her since she's been here. Not that she's been sad, just a little bit closed off and very stolid.

When they come in for the last time, I go over to help the girls get off after warning the boys to stay put and behave. Tris is in the front of the boat, taking life vests off each of the girls before they get off the boat. I wade into the water, and help them down if they need it.

Tris sets the life vests down and jumps off, making water spray on my chest and neck. I give her an incredulous look, and I'm about to make a remark when she seemingly trips on something underwater.

I catch her right before she falls completely, and my skin lights on fire when I come in contact with her shoulders and arms. I hold on to her for way to long after helping her stand.

She gives me a sheepish smile, "Thanks. There was, uh, a rock," she explains awkwardly.

"It's fine, no problem," I say, and try my best to give her a warm smile. She's making me bipolar, but I can't help do things like that when I'm in her presence.

She smiles in return, her cheeks turning pink. She starts to walk to shore, and I quickly scoop up water with my hands and throw it on her head. She's mostly wet from tubing, but she was starting to dry off a bit.

She turns around and gives me a devious glare, and before I know it we're both splashing water on each other. I kneel down and put my hands deep underwater, and push up with so much force that a whole sheet of water breaks on her body. She kicks the water rapidly, constantly peppering me with little droplets.

Her smile ignites a fire inside of me, and I could go on forever just having a water fight with her on a beautiful day, but I hear a shrill whistle and look to my right.

Lauren, the life guard driving the boat, is motioning for us to go back to the beach and get going again. I realize that we left 14 kids unattended while we splashed each other, and got soaking wet.

I give Tris a quick embarrassed glance, a murmured 'sorry,' and after apologizing more thoroughly to Lauren I go and organize the boys. Thankfully, most of the campers were not paying attention to our little display.

* * *

After the boys and I go tubing, we clean up and go back to our campsite. We elected to cook in tonight, so we'll be making dinner instead of going to the dining hall. I much prefer eating out here, but we can't do that every night because we don't have that much food.

I get the fire started while Tris sits the campers down and takes dinner orders. We're making burritos, and I'll cook the meat separately over the fire and then they'll put in all the other good stuff they want.

"Alright, so raise your hand if you want _chicken_ on your burrito," Tris tells them, for the third time. About half raise their hands. "Okay, so who wants beef?" A few more raise their hands. "Is there anyone who does _not_ want meat?" Two girls raise their hands, and Tris takes the notes on her clipboard. She goes over them with the campers, and after verifying, she tells them to go hang out in their lean-to's for a while and do their leisure activities – reading, writing to family, anything they want – and comes over to me.

"Okay, so that's seven for chicken and five for beef. So, two packages of each?" She sits down on a log opposite me as I tend the growing flames.

"Sounds about right. What do you want?" I ask after blowing on the embers.

"Oh, right. I'll have chicken, please." I nod in response, still blowing on the embers. "Do you need help?" she asks with a quiet laugh, after observing my fire, if you could call it that. I set it up perfectly, after years of experience, but the wood is a bit damp so it will be harder to get it going.

"I have it under control," I say, a corner of my mouth tugging up.

"I have no doubts you do, because your fire is so small," she says and gets down on her knees to start blowing. We blow in synch, and after a few tries I let out a hearty laugh at the situation. Even with two of us, the flame is only getting smaller.

"Fire starter?" She asks with a smile, after dusting off.

"Fire starter," I confirm.

I get it going right away after setting off the fire starter, and Tris brings over two pans filled with meat and sets them on the rack. "I'll go set up the rest of the food," she says and then hurries to the pavilion to get the other burrito fillings set up. We have cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, rice, and sour cream. We also have foil to wrap them in, so it's a little bit less messy.

I cook the meat quickly, albeit unevenly. I bring it over to Tris and line it up in her little buffet line. "Do you want me to get the campers?"

She nods, "Yeah. Not all at once, though."

"Right. You're really good at this, you know," I compliment as I walk away, not waiting to hear her most likely self-deprecating reaction. I don't lie, often, she really is good at this job. We've quickly become more like a team rather than me leading her. Which is perfectly fine, because she knows what she's doing.

I start on the right, and go up to the outer lean-to. It's full of girls who are doing a variety of activities one might expect tweens to partake in. Two are painting each others nails while reading from the tabloid, and the other two are writing to their parents.

"You guys can go and get dinner now, and if your letters are ready I'll take them," I say. They all scramble up and get out of their mosquito nets. I get two letters as they pass by me, and I fold them over, careful not to read them.

I wait a few minutes before going to the next lean-to and doing the same thing. Since this one is full of boys, it's not surprising that I get no letters. I do this for all of the lean-to's, and I bring back five letters when they're all set and eating.

Tris is just starting to make hers, and I see that most of the fillings are gone. "Sorry," she says when she notices the look I give her, "I told them to take fair amounts but I don't think all of them did."

"It's fine, I just really wanted that sour cream."

"Agh! So did I! It's not a true burrito without it," Tris agrees. We both put all the available things in, which ends up just being cheese and a shred of lettuce or two.

"We get dibs on dessert," Tris says once we've sat down at a table. We're sittings separately from the campers, for now, since we're just starting to eat and most of them are already done.

"Lava cakes, right?" she nods, "Yes, I completely agree." We carry on a light conversation while we eat, and I find myself feeling more relaxed around her. It's as if my little mistake earlier today doesn't even matter, and I don't really think we need to talk about it, unless she wants to. Then, I either have to tell her that I think she's beautiful or make up a lie, neither of which I want to do. Yet.

"Alright, you guys can hang out here or go spend time in your lean-to's again, whichever you want." Most of the kids go back to do leisure activities, but some of the girls stay seated, and three boys go and get a soccer ball and pass it around.

Tris and I pull out the materials for dessert. "Um, Four?"

"Yeah?"

"We don't have any eggs," Tris says, rifling through the crate.

"What? I specifically said 'four eggs' on the order sheet," I say. I stand next to her and sift through the crate to find the order sheet, and sure enough it says eggs.

"Well, I guess they forgot to give us some. We can't make a cake without eggs."

"It doesn't have to be a _cake_, per se," I say, an idea forming in my mind.

Tris cocks an eyebrow, and I smile at how adorable she is, then scold myself for thinking that. "We could just mix the other ingredients together and see what happens! With cake mix, water, oil, and chocolate we can make something."

"What if it's a disaster?"

"We'll just have to eat it," I grin at her.

She relents, "Okay."

We work together to mix the batter, only occasionally 'spilling' something on the other. It's all mixed together evenly rather quickly, but it will take a while to cook.

Tris goes off and makes friendship bracelets with a group of girls, so I toss around a football with a few of the boys. I keep flitting my eyes over to where they're sitting and talking quietly, and I see Tris smile a lot and look like she's really bonding with the girls.

The boys don't really care for talking, so we throw the ball around a lot until I tell them they have to go to their lean-tos or to the tables in the middle. They choose to go back to their lean-to, and I go and sit down next to Tris and the girls.

They all squeal quietly, thinking I can't hear them, when I sit down. Tris taps me on the shoulder and opens her mouth to say something, her face apologetic, when one of the girls bursts out "Tris thinks you're _hot_!"

My mouth hangs open, stunned, and I think she might actually have feelings for me before I come to my senses. Twelve year old girls take any comment into a romantic compliment, and I can't trust anything they say. And Tris would never like anyone like me, anyways.

Her cheeks are bright red, and the girls giggle across from us. "I don't – I didn't say that," she says hastily.

"It's alright, Tris, I believe you," I turn my attention to the girls across from me, "Don't go starting anything now. Tris will have to decide if she likes me for herself," I say with a big smile, so they know I'm joking, well, only partially.

She puts her head in her hands, and shakes her head. I put my hand on her shoulder and feel her shaking with laughter, "Let's check on the cake?"

She sits up and nods. We go to the fire to find that the 'cake' is much more like a goo. It didn't harden in the least, and it just looks like thick melted chocolate.

"Well…we can call it pudding?"

"Lava pudding, that way it sounds a bit more appealing. Plus it's more accurate, considering that thing is probably a thousand degrees," I joke as I take it off the fire using a rag to protect my hand. We bring it over to the tables, and tell the kids who have gathered that it didn't work so well, but if they want we can scoop some on their plates like pudding.

They all go for that idea, and this time we make sure to leave more than enough for ourselves to eat. I hold up the scoop for Tris's plate, but she says with audible distress, "There aren't any more plates!"

"This is not our day," I chuckle. "Would you care if we just ate it out of the pot?"

She takes a huge spoonful in her mouth, "That would be wonderful. Mmm, this is really good!"

I grab a spoon and dig in. It does taste wonderful, just like cake but in liquid-ish form.

I look up to see that Tris has chocolate all over her face, and I can't conceal my smile. "What?" she asks.

"You have a little something," I gesture to her whole face, "Right there."

She tries to lick it off with her tongue, but some of it is out of reach. "Did I get it?"

I shake my head and hand her a napkin, "Nope." She wipes most of it off, but there's still a tiny dot at the corner of her mouth. Without thinking, I reach up with my thumb and wipe it off. She doesn't react badly to my touch, which I suppose is a good thing.

"Thanks," she says, gratefully.

"No problem," I say, projecting happiness. On the inside, I wish she would have shown some sign of emotion when I touched her, but it's ridiculous to think that these feelings I have would be reciprocated.

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry that kinda sucked! Lots of Fourtris, and we get deeper into Four's insecurities and other parts of his mind. Please review, and thanks for reading!


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: **Eek! Sorry for not posting on Monday like my schedule says…I promise that next week it'll get going. I rearranged my room and had my first AP test that consisted of a lengthy essay…so safe to say I was busy. I'll try to update when I say I will, but sometimes life gets in the way.

* * *

**Chapter 11**

**Thursday, July 3**

_**Tris**_

"It's going to thunder today?" I ask, hoping it doesn't. The mention of rain brings back so many memories from my time at this camp, hiding in cabins for hours singing repetitive yet cheerful camp songs. Getting caught out in the rain, and running for the nearest pavilion or cover. And of course, when it thunders, there is no swimming allowed, meaning often times we had to miss our beloved lake time.

"Supposed to. Obviously I hope it doesn't, but we can't avoid it the whole summer. At least it hasn't rained yet, there are some weeks where I feel like it's constantly pouring," Four replies, taking a bite of his bagel.

"And today was supposed to be rafting!" I realize out loud. We had planned to go on a tiny field trip up the road to a raging river to go white water rafting, but if it even thundered once, all bets are off. Plain rain might be okay, though.

"Don't get so worked up," he says with a chuckle, "It hasn't thundered yet."

"Thunder?" One of the younger boys cries out in distress. Everyone was looking forward to this day since we told them what we would be doing. All heads snapped to our end of the table, each looking worried and fearful.

"No, it's just a chance. We're going rafting until we hear thunder, okay? It's supposed to be in the late afternoon; we'll be back by then," Four says, quelling their doubts.

They all go back to eating, their voices still a bit louder than normal, hoping out loud that it won't rain.

"After we go up to get changed, just make sure you grab your ponchos," I add, getting their attention. They start to get agitated, "Just in case!" I add hastily.

I go to put my dishes away and see Christina washing her plate. I slide in next to her and bump her elbow.

"Hey! How's camp life treating you?" She asks, scrubbing at some eggs.

"Good! You? Any spiders?"

She pauses her washing and gives me a glare, "Girl, I could tell you about all of them, but that would take all day. And today we're going hiking, so I guess I would love to tell you and sit it out. Shauna can handle the campers, probably."

"You only have one more day, really. Tomorrow's All Camp Day, and that's usually fun, from what I can remember," I remind her, referencing the fun activities we'll have tomorrow, the last day of each week. The whole camp gets together in teams and races to finish certain fun games that are spread out all over, and usually there's a theme. I don't know what tomorrow's is, but I'm sure Four will fill me in before.

"Right! I forgot all about that, those are so fun! Hopefully that means no spiders," Chris mutters. I rinse out my cup and start to put away my silverware, and my eyes dart to where Four is sitting, unconsciously.

"So, what's going on with you and number boy?" Christina asks, again, while putting away her fork.

"For the last time, Chris, nothing. Seriously, I don't like him, and if I did he wouldn't like me," I rebut.

"Are you kidding?" She finishes cleaning up, and gives me an incredulous eyebrow raise. "Hun, you've got it, now you have to flaunt it." She seemingly demonstrates as she walks away, swaying her hips slightly, and I don't miss the way Will's eyes find her backside.

I shake my head and wash my hands, sitting back down next to Four. "Are you ready to go?" He asks.

"Yup. Everyone done?" I look down the table, seeing a clear wooden top. "Alright, let's head up."

We lead them to the campsite, and everyone gets changed. Four and I both turn to the outside of the lean-to while we both get dressed for the day. I put on some shorts and my green camp tee, pulling my hair up – it's going to be extra humid.

He often finishes before I do, but I trust him not to turn around until I say so. He's been very gentlemanly, and I haven't found reason to doubt his word.

"So what are we going to do if rafting gets cancelled?" I ask him quietly once we're walking back to main camp.

"Leisure time, probably, unless I can get Marlene to do some crafts. Depends."

We reach the camp shortly, and see our bus waiting for us. It hasn't thundered yet, while some campers have claimed to feel some drops on their faces, I haven't felt anything so I think they may be imagining it.

We all board the bus after doing roll call, and Four and I sit in the front. It's about a five minute drive, thankfully, so the kids shouldn't be too hard to control.

"Have you ever been before?" Four asks me after a minute.

"White water rafting?" I turn my head to him, away from the window, and he nods. "No, but I've always wanted to. You?"

He shakes his head. "We'll have to take them in separate rafts, so I'll take the boys, and you can take the girls?"

"Sounds good," I say, hopefully sounding cheerful. I do my best to ignore the sinking pit in my stomach that emerged when he said we couldn't go together. I've been wanting to do everything with him, touch him, just be near him. Next week we probably won't be partners, I won't ever see him. That will be good, I know, but the irrational part of my brain keeps screaming bad bad bad.

I can't become this attached, it's just a summer job and we're definitely going different ways after this. Well, probably. I haven't actually asked what he does outside of camp, and he hasn't asked me. He doesn't seem particularly open and willing to share his personal life, so I leave him alone in that regard.

We get there a minute later, and we get out of the bus first, making sure we have everyone before proceeding.

There's a big sign that says 'Timber's Rafting' in block letters, and we pass under it and go on a short trail until we come to a big building. Four goes inside while I wait with the campers. Since this is a risky activity, we had to have the parents sign a waiver, and Four has to give it to the people in charge and check us in.

"Tris?" Arden asks from beside me, "Are we all going in the same raft?"

"No, Four will take the boys and I'll take you girls. Are you excited?"

She nods her head, and then looks genuinely worried. "We'll be safe, right?"

"Perfectly safe. They've never had an accident here in over 30 years of doing the sport," I reassure her. Four comes out, trailed by two men who looked dressed for rafting, they're probably the ones who will be riding with us and instructing us.

"Hello, and welcome to Timber's Rafting! Is everyone excited?" One of the men steps up and asks, receiving a chorus of loud 'yes's from the campers. "Good! That's what I like to hear. Now, if everyone will follow me, I'll get you your gear and we'll get going. This way," he gestures with his hand and starts down the trail.

We reach a big shed, much like ours at camp, that holds all the equipment. We pass out life vests, getting the right size for everyone. I have to use a child sized one that constricts what little chest I have and is very painful at first, so I end up loosening a bit so I'm still safe but more comfortable.

We all put on helmets and get our paddles, and we put all our bags in little cubbies where they'll be safe from the water. Once we double check everyone's straps, pulling on the helmets one by one, we go down to the water. The sound of the river is overwhelming, and this is only the beginning, not nearly the roughest part, according to our guide.

There are two boats inflated near the side of the water, and each guide steps up to one and tells us to get into our groups and come on in. I help our guide, who's name is Michael, to push the raft into the water enough so we can all get in. I get in first and sit on the left front of the yellow and red inflatable. Arden sits next to me, and the girls gradually file in until we're all situated. Michael climbs in after us, sitting next to me at the front.

I lean back and smile at all the girls, who appear to be nervously excited, and give a thumbs up.

"Alright everyone, can you please hold up your paddles?" Michael asks, holding his up too. He shows us the right way to hold and paddle, although we mostly let the river take us, he'll instruct what side to row when.

He sticks his hand out the side of the raft and pushes us in all the way, and I momentarily marvel at his strength. I see the boys up ahead struggle to get in the water, until Four reaches over and pushes them in effortlessly, his arms bulging with taught muscle. I swallow dryly and look away.

We start slowly, at first, Michael and I rowing occasionally. When we get further down, the rapids really pick up. I feel the spray on my cheeks and forehead, collecting into little droplets on my eyelashes that grow and drop down once they become too heavy.

We suddenly hit a big dip, eliciting a shriek from a camper behind me. A sheet of water taller than the boat crashes down on us, soaking me from head to toe. I forgot to wear a different shirt – I wore my green camp shirt, so I hope this will dry by tomorrow because I have to wear it every day.

Michael instructs the left side to row, because we're tilted and about to turn backwards. We all paddle and turn forwards again. The cataracts only grow in intensity as we journey down the river, and we're constantly being splashed or dropped or turned, but it's the most fun I've had in a while.

"There's a tiny waterfall up ahead, but we can avoid it!" our guide shouts over the roaring water. "Yes or no?"

The consensus is yes, so we steer to the rapids and the raging river gets louder. The front of the boat suddenly pitches forward, and for a second we're suspended in air, but the water pushes us forward and we fly and hit the water, causing a downpour in a circle all around us. The girls all scream in delight, and I find myself joining in.

We see the boys up ahead, slowing down, and the river gradually gets less intense. We pull to a stop behind them, and Michael gets out first, helping each girl out, and me last. I let out a little laugh, brushing some water off my legs and whipping my hair around.

The boys and girls rush to meet each other and talk about their experiences, and I hear that the boys chose not to go over the waterfall, and are currently getting bashed for it by the 'lesser' girls. Four strides over to me after helping get the rafts out of the water completely, a smug grin on his face.

I struggle to keep my eyes on his, because his shirt is wet and clinging to his muscles and his hair is soaked, making little droplets trail down his cheeks and onto his neck.

"Have fun?" he comes to a stop in front of me, crossing his arms across his wet chest.

"Yeah! I heard you chickened out at the waterfall?" I tease, leaning closer to him involuntarily.

"Hey, that wasn't me, it was all them. Tween boys are the most reckless beings but apparently also the most fearful," he chuckles. His eyes skim my body and I feel my cheeks heat up, and I duck my head to the side, pretending to be interested in the damp grass.

"Everyone, over here! Let's go put away all this junk, eh?" the campers laugh and follow Four's guide up the trail, and so do we. Michael falls into step beside me and I look at him expectantly.

"Tris, right?" I nod. "So, you working there all summer?" I nod again. "Cool, sounds like a fun job." I wonder what he really wants, making this awkward conversation. "Do you, maybe, wanna hang out sometime? On your days off?"

My mouth hangs open and I'm temporarily mute in surprise. Is he asking me outa? "I, uh, I'd love to, really, but we have to work 24/7. As soon as one leaves, another group comes," I lie, biting my lip. Four, who is walking on my other side, doesn't say anything.

"Really?" Michael says in surprise. "I thought you guys had weekends off."

"Nope, new rules. Extended stay for campers," I say quickly, and leave it at that. We put away our stuff and thank the guides, and board the bus back to camp.

* * *

**A/N: **Thanks for reading! Please leave a review, I'd love to know what you think. Next chapter will be longer, and up on Friday.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: **Sorry that this is so late at night (I like to get it up in the afternoon, normally) but this is how it's going to be with school. I had my first AP test today…not so good. At least I can disappear into the wonderful romance of Four and Tris, if only for a few minutes.

* * *

**Chapter 12**

**Friday, July 4**

_**Tobias**_

I wake with a jolt and realize that today might be my last day of working with Tris. As always, I'm split half and half, between thinking if this is a good or bad thing. Logically, I need to get away from her, but at the same time I can't be away from her. I'll likely see her tonight, because there are fireworks that all the counselors go to together. Normally, the camp gets out on Saturdays but since today is a holiday, the campers will be picked up at six in the evening.

Tris is still sleeping peacefully, and I tuck in a loose corner of her mosquito net as I exit the lean-to. Today's All Camp Day, and the theme is medieval. There will be games scattered around like archery, water balloon fights, fencing, stuff like that.

I always let her sleep in a little longer than she should, so I get dressed and cleaned up before going back and getting her up. She rubs her eyes and mumbles a bit, getting out a few moments later with messy bed hair. She's so cute and innocent it almost kills me.

I fight the urge to touch her and help her down the stairs, because she's perfectly capable but I want to put my hand on her shoulder.

I get the campers up and give them a few minutes to get dressed and ready, and I sit in the middle of camp and take a minute to savor the moment. The grass is full of dew and the air smells fresh and damp, and the sun is just peeking above the treetops. The cool air bites at my skin and it makes me remember why I agreed to this job in the first place, all those years ago. Nature.

My father pressured me into getting a job right out of high school, and since I was going to tech college in the fall this was the perfect option. Well, in his opinion. It's grown on me, I admit, but most recently because of Tris.

I've come to accept that I have a bit of a crush on her. It's a new feeling, one I haven't felt before. In high school, I was always hit on by plenty of girls at the three parties that I actually went to, and there have been a few in college but none of them interested me like she does. I can't explain it, just something about her that draws me in.

I remind the kids to pack up their stuff, because this is the last time they'll be at this site. We pile up all their sleeping bags and sheets and backpacks in the middle, where the carts will come and bring it down for pick up later today.

We stroll down to breakfast, everyone feeling sad even though it's not over yet. I have no reason to be feeling so nostalgic, because I have seven more weeks of this. I'm crossing my fingers that I'll be with Tris for at least one of them, and have the courage to do something. Well, if it's right. I'm torn right down the middle.

The staff made chocolate chip pancakes that we munch on happily. The dining hall is lively as usual but there's a lull in the room that happens near the end of every session. Kids make new friends, that could be as far as an hour away, and they'll never see again. It's sad.

Max comes out wearing, fittingly, a king outfit. Everyone bursts out laughing, but he keeps in character during his speech. "Ladies and gentlemen, today I cordially invite you to a day of fun and games inspired by medieval times! Will all my dukes and duchesses please come up here for a quick moment," he says with what I think is supposed to be a british accent.

The 'dukes and duchesses,' or the counselors, meet up at the front of the room. He hands out capes and hats and other themed things for us all to wear, and we return to our seats. I have a deep purple cape and crown, and Tris has a big, pink, cone-shaped hat with a veil in the back.

"Princes and princesses of the land! Listen to the dukes and duchesses as they will lead you on this adventure. It's a competition of sorts, and whichever team gets the most points at each game will have a bonus round: killing the dragon," he gestures grandly with his hands as he speaks, eliciting 'oohs' and 'aahs' from the kids.

"Meet your leaders outside, and then you shall embark. Resume eating," he commands and with an exaggerated swish of his cape he disappears into the kitchen. I pull out our schedule, and see that we're going to the fencing station first.

We walk outside and I share with Tris what we'll be doing. "Are we supposed to act all medieval, too? I don't think I can do that," she worries.

I laugh, "No, I don't think so, the hat is good enough," I poke her hat, squishing it down.

"Hey!" She takes it off and fixes it, putting it back on her head. Her golden hair flows behind it, and she really does look like a princess. Beautiful is the word that often comes to mind when I look at her.

In a few minutes we find ourselves in the play field, which is basically just what it sounds like – a large, grassy field surrounded by trees. A fencing teacher is waiting for us in one corner. The kids run over, since this is the only place at camp where you can run, and Tris and I jog behind. She runs so effortlessly…

I shake my head and clear my thoughts. I can think about that later, tonight at the fireworks. Not now.

The fencing instructor introduces himself as Andrew, and he begins to explain the safety rules for fencing. We only have an hour at each station, and seven minutes to travel in between, so it's brief but solid. He has the swords laid out in a semi circle around him, and gloves and a few protective suits in a pile on one side.

He hands out the foils, or swords, to everyone based on their hand size and grip. I wasn't sure if Tris and I were to be included, but we're each handed a sword. We keep them pointed downwards, like he told us to, as he demonstrates basic strikes and blocks. He gives everyone a glove, helmet, and a protective suit.

The kids all partner up together, and that leaves Tris and I. I slip all the gear on without trouble, but Tris's suit is way too big. "Here, I got it," I step over to her and pull up her zipper gently without thinking. Her skin is warm underneath her shirt and I want to keep touching her forever. My hand lingers after I'm done, and I finally step away and ready my sword.

"En guard," I say somewhat goofily, not sure if that's what you're supposed to say or not. Tris smiles at me through her mask and puts up her sword. I feign strikes at her, stepping forward each time like he said, my sword not reaching her all the way. In one swift movement, she lunges forward with a surge of power and pokes me in the stomach.

"Ha! Gotcha," she gloats smugly, backing away and readying for another go. We play for a few more rounds, following by the rules, and we both get each other an equal amount of times. It eventually degenerates to me chasing her around at swordpoint until I finally poke her on the back.

We wrap up the session shortly after. I play a few rounds with some boys and let them get me a little bit, and Tris does the same with the girls. We clean up and give the equipment back and thank Andrew, and head off to our next destination.

We go to the beach where there are tons of crates filled to the brim with multicolored water balloons. Lauren, the person organizing it, tells us to divide into two teams: red and blue, who will each have different jerseys.

Tris and I become captains, and we agree not to pick teams of just boys or girls. "You first," I insist, and watch as she pretends to scan the kids who are all eagerly raising their hands. To make it fair, she smartly does eenie meenie miney mo, to pick a camper randomly.

I follow suit and pick randomly, until we're in teams of eight. My team puts on blue jerseys and Tris's team puts on red. We get behind barriers set in the sand, painted red and blue for each side. There are little nooks and crannies to hide in and holes to launch the balloons through. We are given a few minutes to set up and get ready with the balloons before Lauren blows the whistle signaling the start.

I peek over a barrier that I'm crouching behind, looking for a streak of blond hair that would give away my target, but I don't see any. I do see, however, a boy named TJ who thinks he's hiding but he's really not. I take out a blue balloon that's filled well, roll it around in my hands, and throw a calculated shot.

It hits him perfectly in the shoulder, and he recoils in surprise as I duck down to hide again. I started a flurry of hits, and I hear smacking sounds as water balloons from the other team hit our barriers. Kids scream when they're hit, and I think we might be winning. I pop again, hoping for another stealth shot, when I get hit on the side of my head.

I turn to try to find the source, wiping the water and the remains of the red balloon and while I'm looking, I'm hit again but this time from another side. None of the kids seem to be aiming at me, but they could be really good actors. I still haven't seen Tris, and I scan for her when I'm hit _again_, on the same cheek as the first time. I quickly whip my head around and I see it. A strand of blond hair highlighted in the sunlight, darting through the barriers.

_She's moving around_. Of course she is, the sedentary man is always the loser. I decide to copy her strategy, moving to the other side of the barrier. I see her pop up quickly, looking for me, and I hit her square in the forehead, and I watch her face turn to astonishment as it drips down her. She turns to me and I catch her eyes for a second, smirking, before darting back down.

We play like that until it's time to leave, and although I'm pretty sure we won, Lauren calls it a tie – like I'm sure she does for all of the games, so nobody's feelings get hurt.

"We totally won," I half whisper to Tris as we lead the way to our next station.

"Uh! No, you didn't, and you would have been creamed if you hadn't figured out our superior strategy," she says firmly.

"You mean your strategy and the kids frantic throwing?" I shoot her another smirk.

"Yes, and my team was better at it than yours was," she says, then laughs at how ridiculous it sounds.

We arrive at archery next, and it's set up in the play field but on the opposite side from fencing. Zeke is running this one, because he's actually trained in this area.

He, like the fencing instructor, gives a brief safety speech and then hands out quivers, arrows, and bows. Tris and I have to share one, since we were just short. He teaches us, slowly, how to shoot at the targets we have. There are actual targets, but he blew up a bunch of balloons so that when someone hits the target, it will be loud and more rewarding.

I let Tris go first, and I watch her struggle in pulling back the bow. She's strong, but it's a hard thing to learn in only an hour. Without thinking – this seems to be a pattern when I'm around her – I put my hands over hers and stand right behind her, adjusting her stance.

"Stand just like this…yeah. Now pull it back, and let go," I move away from her before she lets go so she can aim on her own. I trained with stuff like this during high school; I used to work at a gym so my aim is close to perfect.

She hits the edge of the target, and turns to me with flushed cheeks and a smile. She shoots the rest of the arrows from her quiver without needing help, to my disappointment, and Zeke calls to stop and everyone goes and gets their arrows. I help TJ find one of his he lost in the woods, and when I get back Tris hands me the gear. I take it, weighing it and getting a feel for the foreign bow before stringing it and shooting. I hit the edge of the center, so the balloon pops.

Everyone turns to me and cheers, as I'm the first one to hit the target right on. I fire the rest of the arrows off in quick succession, and since I'm done before the campers I go talk to Zeke.

"How's archery treating you?"

"Oh, it's grand. I feel like a real master," he gestures to his Robinhood-like hat, "And it's funny seeing how hard kids fail at this."

"Is that why you're a counselor, to see kids fail?" I kid.

"Basically, yeah," he jokes, and we watch the campers shoot for a minute. "Hey, how's Tris?" he asks quietly, a small smirk on his face.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I say nonchalantly, although inside I'm reeling. Am I that obvious? "She's nice to work with, great with the kids, and she does all the work."

He gives me a playful glare, "You know that's not what I mean, but if you're not willing to talk about it, I won't push it," he turns with a smirk before calling to stop shooting and get arrows once more.

Thankfully, Zeke knows me and he knows not to push it. But I guess my feelings for her are so obvious that he picked up on it in only a few minutes.

I retrieve all the arrows and help the kids pick up some, and hand Tris the bow. She shoots five and misses, and on her sixth she hits it dead on, and the balloon pops loudly. Everyone cheers.

After that, a few campers manage to pop the balloons and those who didn't are offered a chance to go up close and pop it for fun.

We walk to the dining hall - after thanking Zeke and cleaning up – for a medieval feast.

* * *

**A/N: **So I decided to put it into two parts because it would be so long! Hope it wasn't boring, on Monday I'll do the rest of the day & the fireworks. As usual, my apologies for any mistakes because I just did spellcheck and didn't read it through. Those of you complaining that something needs to happen soon…don't fret, it will happen _very_ soon. Please follow, favorite, and review me your thoughts! Thanks for reading, see you on Monday :)


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: **Again, sorry this is kinda late at night! I had a ton of homework, and I had to go shopping…I'll do my best to get it up earlier on Friday.

* * *

**Chapter 13**

**Friday, July 4**

_**Tris **_

The dining hall is made to look like a Renaissance castle, with fake candles at the table and family crests hung on the walls. The cooks have outdone themselves, having made whole turkeys, bread, and assorted veggies. The salad bar is also up and running, for those who aren't willing to plunge into the medieval cuisine.

Four and I lead the kids over to their table where they sit down and wait patiently for us to cut the meat. He cuts a bunch of thin slices, and passes around the turkey and gravy first. I itch at my hat, which I did not agree to wear, and take my share of food.

It's sentimental, this being our last meal with this wonderful group. The campers eat greedily and so do I, until we're called to attention by Max. He's standing at the front of the room, and he's brought out an assortment of instruments behind him. "Royal friends, please enjoy the complimentary music for this wonderful feast. It will be played to us by," he scans the room and I hope this doesn't involve me, "Duke Four and Duchess Tris! Come on up, you're going first."

I give Four a helpless look, and he just smiles and stands, offering me his hand. I take it, not without blushing, and whisper furiously to him on the way up, "Can't you refuse? I can't play an instrument, Four, not in front of the whole camp?"

He chuckles softly, somehow very relaxed, "Don't worry, it's supposed to be funny. I'll play the recorder," we take our seats in the plastic chairs, "And you can play some sort of percussion."

He grabs the recorder and places his fingers along the holes, probably in the correct way. I pick up a tambourine and place my thumb through the hole.

"Ready?" he asks with a glint in his eye, voice low and gravelly. The hall is fairly quiet, waiting for this disaster to begin.

I nod, and he starts playing. It's a nice tune, one that sounds vaguely medieval and I think he's just improvising. It's a little off, stopping and going a lot but overall doesn't sound completely terrible. The sight of him playing the little recorder, however, is quite funny and some of the campers start to laugh.

He looks at me with wide eyes and gestures towards my tambourine. I realize that I should be playing and start to randomly hit it on whatever beat I can find.

We play for a few more minutes, basically the same tune over and over because Four can't seem come up with anything new. Max calls more people up, without letting us go back, and soon Chris and Shauna sit beside us, playing the ukulele and the harp.

Soon all the counselors are up at the front, playing all sorts of instruments and it sounds like a discombobulated mess. The campers – and Max – are laughing hysterically, and when we finish there's a big round of applause.

We sit down and I finish my meal, whilst being simultaneously complimented and ridiculed by the campers. Zeke and Uriah act out skits, and everyone laughs until their stomachs hurt. I'm reminded why I love camp so much, it's moments like these.

Since we had a late and longer lunch than usual, we only have one more 'station' to go to, and this is one the whole camp is doing together: killing the 'dragon.'

Max told Four who told me that they have a big dragon suit that requires multiple people to go in it, but if you go in you'll get wet. The campers are all going to have five water balloons to shoot it with, and the goal is to 'kill' it.

All the counselors meet in the Pit to discuss who will go in, while the campers are watched by the cooks in the dining hall.

Zeke, Uriah, and Will all volunteer. They need one person so Four says he'll go as well. The rest of us go to get the kids and bring them out onto the field, where the boys will emerge in a big dragon costume.

We all lead the kids out in a big cluster, so I get the opportunity to talk to Christina while we walk.

"So, you're going to the fireworks tonight?" she asks me, after answering a few questions from her campers.

"What fireworks?" I question her back, clueless. I heard Zeke talking about it, but I didn't know Chris was going too.

"Oh, all the counselors go! I'm surprised Four didn't ask you. But you can come with me and Will. They're just the ones in the city, but we go to the barbeque and hang out a bit."

I was looking forward to a week by myself, but if Four is going, then I want to be there too. I can't ask Christina directly if he's going, because I think she's already on to me, and that's not good. "So…everyone's going?"

She rolls her eyes, "Yes, Four is going to be there."

"That's not what I meant," I say feebly.

"Okay," she smirks.

We get to the field and find buckets of water balloons. Christina yells for everyone's attention, "Everybody! Take only five! _Only five!_ No more, no less! No sharing, no trading, just take yours and hold them in your hands. Got it?"

They all nod in return, and quickly run to the buckets to get their hands on the best five. We line them all up in a semicircle and wait for the dragon.

With a guttural growl, the boys emerge from a path in the woods opposite from us. They're all in some big dragon costume, much like the chinese dragons but this one is big and green. All you can see is their feet, and I know Four is in the back from his worn out boots.

They growl again, and all the kids start to launch their balloons without warning. Most of them smack the dragon on the side, and soon it's all sopping wet. Once the campers have loosed all their balloons, the dragon groans and lies on its side, and 'dies.'

Zeke emerges first, claiming to have been killed, "It ate me! Oh, you all saved my life! Thank you!"

Uriah comes out second, followed by Will and Four. They tell the tale of their journey and how they ended up inside the beast.

Before we know it, the sun is getting low and Max tells us it's time to go to main camp for pick up. We all walk back quietly, and the campers whisper to their new friends and exchange contact information.

I lean over to Four, "That was a good show you put on."

He smirks, "Thank you, thank you. At least the fabric was so thick I barely got wet, but it was really, really hot in there. And Uriah wouldn't shut up."

When we get to main camp, the luggage is sorted out into groups with our colored flags. I go to ours, waving all our kids over and Four goes inside to get his clipboard. The first parents start to show up and we check out the kids, hugging them and saying goodbye.

Arden and her twin Aria leave shortly after the first pick ups, and I say a special goodbye to her and wish her well.

At six thirty, all of the campers are gone and it feels so empty.

"One week down, seven to go! Who's ready for the best summer yet?" Zeke says, pulling out his phone. "Ahh, technology."

Four smiles and shakes his head at his friend. "I have to go check on the apartment, so I'll meet you guys at the fireworks at seven thirty?" Everyone nods. I realize, with some joy, that I'll have the whole summer to get to know all of these nice people, and I might even make some friends.

I pull my phone out of my bag and turn it on, like everyone else did. I'm about to head inside to the dining hall to wait for Chris to leave when Four calls my name.

"Yeah?" I ask, walking over to where he's leaning against his car. His muscles on his arms bulge and I swallow thickly, looking instead at his handsome eyes.

"So, you're going tonight, right?" he asks me quietly, not wanting attention from the rest of the group.

"Yup, Chris told me about it," I tell him.

"Cool. I'll see you then?" he smiles warmly, and seems genuinely happy.

"Yeah, see you!" I say, and head inside as he gets in his car and drives away.

We all hang inside the dining hall until about seven, when Zeke says we should get going. Four is the only one of us with an apartment nearby so he can go home, the rest of us had to wait. I pile in with Chris and Will and we drive back towards the city.

We get there in twenty minutes, and pull into the grass parking lot to find Four waiting for us. He changed into a black tee and tan shorts, revealing his muscular calves. I get out, and he sees me and smiles, sending my heart racing.

"Hey," he says to all of us, while looking at me.

"So we're gonna grab some food, right? I want full portions, no more camp sharing at least for this weekend!" Zeke enthuses. We all agree and go to the various food trucks stationed around It's a full blown fair, with a few dinky rides and lots of games and food.

Chris lends me a ten and I buy a hamburger. We all sit down at a picnic table and eat, savoring the taste of unhealthy food. When Four sits next to me with a corn dog I don't miss the look Christina gives us.

We all finish eating rather quickly, and then decide to go do the ferris wheel and the zero gravity ride. We pay for our tickets and wait in line, getting in pairs. Four is stuck with me, because we're the odd two out.

As we get closer to getting on, I notice that he's looking pale and nauseous. "Are you okay?" I ask him, concerned.

"Yeah, not a fan of heights," he says quietly, eyeing the ferris wheel.

"Oh, we don't have to go on it if you don't want to," I tell him softly.

He smiles down at me, "No it's fine, I'll get over it."

We get on after everyone else, and Four lets me slide into the seat first and he follows. He gulps when the bar is lowered, and I almost can't believe that big Four is afraid of a ferris wheel.

We get up high and he seems to be doing okay, and I admire the view of the skyline and the fair. We're right next to a small lake, so all the carnival lights reflect on the water and it looks so picturesque. Four looks at the ground nervously, and unfortunately we stop at the very top to let someone on.

The car rocks back and forth, and I feel his hand scrambling around in the seat before it brushes my fingers and holds on. I feel like I'm on fire, and I have to struggle to keep from smiling. I tell myself that he's just holding on to me because he's scared, but I want to believe it's something more.

We descend and he lets go, and I feel cold again. It goes around a few more times and he seems to have found solace in watching his feet with great interest. We get off last, and follow our friends to the line for the zero gravity spinny thing.

Four scratches the back of his neck awkwardly, "Sorry about that."

"Don't be sorry, it was fine. Everyone's afraid of something," I tell him what my mother used to tell me.

He smiles softly, "Well, when you say it like that, it doesn't sound so bad."

The line for this ride is much shorter, and when we get on I thankfully don't vomit. We spin around so fast we're stuck to the sides of the ride, and then we tilt. I manage to turn my head to look at Four next to me and I get really dizzy, but I see him smiling and laughing and it makes me do the same.

When we get off, it's suddenly gotten dark and we realize that the fireworks will start soon. Zeke and Shauna hurry to get blankets from their car and the rest of us go find a spot. We find the perfect place a few feet from the water, far enough back that they won't be right above our heads, but at the perfect angle.

They return with blankets shortly after the warning firework goes off. We all get settled, and again, I end up on a blanket with Four. Not that I'm complaining.

It gets kinda cold so I start to shiver. I lie down on the blanket, on the far edge so I'm not near Four, and wait for them to start.

"Are you cold?" he asks me softly.

"A little," I say, not wanting him to give me his jacket or anything. He does just that, and before I can protest he pulls me close to him, so that it's wrapped around both of us like a blanket.

I freeze, filled with warmth and at the same time, fear. I've never been this close to a boy before and I'm not entirely sure what it means. Four's heart is beating fast against my back, and I'm sure mine is too.

The fireworks start, combinations of red, white, and blue. We rearrange ourselves so we lay on our backs to see better.

We watch them in silence, occasionally pointing out a cool one or making a stray comment about the show.

The finale starts, and the bangs echo so I can't hear anything but the loud fireworks. Four shifts beside me, and when I look over he has an expression on his face that I can't identify.

He says my name, and I can't hear him but I can see the way his lips are moving around the words. Before I can mouth back 'what?' he puts a hand on my cheek and leans in close.

My world stops, and I feel his lips on mine. A soft, ghost like pressure is all I feel but yet I feel so much emotion. _He likes me, he likes me…_

He pulls back and searches my face, and when I smile back at him encouragingly he comes back in for another kiss. His lips are warm and taste like mint and they are pressing against mine in a wonderful way.

Then the fireworks stop, and we pull away abruptly. Our friends start to pick up their blankets, and so do we. Four helps me up without looking me in the eyes and I feel a sharp pain in my stomach. Was I wrong? Does he not like me, or does he think that was a big mistake? I thought it was wonderful.

He folds up the blankets and I hand him his jacket. We all walk back together, talking about the show and how many mosquito bites we acquired.

Four doesn't say anything to me, and I don't say anything to him. We all say goodbye and go our separate ways, and on the drive home with Christina, I stare out the window and wonder what I did wrong.

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry for the gloomy ending, but I promise it will all be resolved soon! Leave a review and a favorite, please? Thanks for reading!


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: **As usual, thanks for all the reviews/follows/favorites! I read every single review and it makes me want to write more.

* * *

**Chapter 14**

**Saturday, July 5**

_**Four**_

I can't stop replaying it in my head. The fireworks were banging in the background, she gave me a coy smile and I couldn't help myself. I even kept going until they were done and I realized what I had done.

Not that I regret it, really, but I could tell she wasn't really as into me as I was her.

I drove home with Zeke after the fireworks, and he dropped me off at our shared place to spend the night with Shauna, so I was left alone to wallow in my mistakes.

I hear the door open while I'm doing the dishes from breakfast, and Zeke comes bounding into the kitchen. "Feels good to be home," he smiles, "Too bad we have to go back tomorrow. I like the plugged in life."

I chuckle and start drying the bowls, "I know. And…I'm kinda dreading going back tomorrow for a different reason."

He lifts an eyebrow and pours himself a glass of water, sitting on the counter while I put things away.

"Care to explain?"

I sigh, and scratch the back of my neck. "I…Tris."

He laughs heartily, leaning back, "Oh, you're in deep. So deep. So, what did you do?"

I give him my best glare, "It's not funny. I sorta kissed her last night, and…," I trail off, suddenly embarrassed at my romantic incompetence.

Zeke looks astonished, then pulls himself together and becomes serious. "Wow, I didn't know you were _that_ into her but…why are you scared to go back? Was it terrible? Did the spark go out?" he jokes light-heartedly.

"_Zeke_. I don't want to talk about this anymore, seeing as you'll be no help. I'm going to get a few groceries and I'll be back in a few, okay?" I grab my keys and walk out the door after he says goodbye.

The problem with working at a summer camp is that on the weekends, we have no food in the house because it would get wasted if we had it. I go to the store and get a loaf of bread and some frozen meals and soda.

When I come back a few hours later, Zeke looks especially apologetic. "Look, man I didn't mean to-"

I wave it off, "It's fine, I'm not mad."

He lets out a gust of air, "Thank god. Well, hey, you probably won't be paired with her again, right?"

"Yeah," I say quietly. I can't imagine being away from her, I can't stop thinking about her, but nobody wants to be involved with the abused boy who's going to leave soon anyways.

* * *

**Sunday, July 6**

Zeke and I pull into the camp parking lot around mid afternoon, wearing our green camp shirts and backpacks filled with clean stuff.

We step out, shutting the doors and crunching gravel under our feet. We walk the trail to main camp in comfortable silence, and I am enjoying the sound of nature. I think I'll go to my spot by the river, later, before Tris gets here. I don't want to cause her any more trouble than I already have.

We find Max at his desk, and some of the others already sitting on the dining hall porch. "Hey, boys, how's it going today?" Max asks, looking up from registration papers.

"Good," we both say in unison.

He smiles broadly, "Great to hear. Well, here are your schedules. Pairs were randomized, as usual. We'll have dinner at six and discuss plans for the week. Okay?" he asks us, shuffling some papers.

We nod, thank him, and go hang out on the porch and wait for our friends to arrive. We sit on benches across from each other, and I open my clipboard slowly, scared to see who I'm with.

At the top of the crisp papers, warm from being freshly printed, my program is typed at the top: Wilderness Explorers. That's good, it's a simple program with lots of hikes, fire building, cook ins, canoeing, and general outdoorsy stuff. I like it, and have enjoyed doing it before.

I scan the schedule and the list of campers until I get to partner. And her name is printed there neatly.

I let out an involuntary sigh, and put my head in my hands. How can I handle this?

"I got Arts and Crafts with Christina," Zeke says with a small frown. He was hoping for Shauna, "That's Tris's friend, right?" I nod. "Oh, don't tell me…"

I nod again, "We have Wilderness Explorer, at least."

He puts a hand on my shoulder, "Sorry, bro." His sad façade ends as soon as Shauna, Lynn, Marlene, and Lauren pull up. "Hey, ladies! How was your weekend?" He disappears from my vision as he strolls over, probably leaning in to kiss Shauna. I feel a pang of jealousy for my best friend, because he has everything he wants, mostly Shauna, while I'm stuck here practically in love with a girl I can't have.

Zeke returns with the four girls and they all sit near me on the porch. "So Zeke, you're with Chris? She came in with Will and Tris right after us, if you want to go find her," Shauna suggests.

"Yeah, I'll go do that. Do you know who you're with?" he kisses Shauna's cheek.

"I'm with Will," she replies.

"Damn! If only we could switch," Zeke mumbles as he walks off to find Christina. Thankfully, the girls don't try to talk to me after he leaves. I'm not in the mood to put up with them. I like Shauna, but Lauren and Marlene can be annoying. Lynn is quiet, and I appreciate that.

I excuse myself quietly and go up to go to my spot. I relish the solitude and take my time on the familiar trail. The leaves dance around me, and I feel at home in the woods, all by myself.

The waterfall's roar grows as I near the river, and I approach the spot and stop dead in my tracks. A blond head sits in my spot, facing away from me. I swear under my breath and try to back away, but I snap a twig.

She whips around, and my breath catches when my eyes meet hers. _Beautiful._ The look she gives me makes me feel a pang of guilt; her eyes are distrusting and also confused. I ignored her after the incident, and I have been consciously avoiding her and any mention of her.

"Um, hey," I say awkwardly. I slowly walk forward, and go to sit beside her because I can't leave now, but this spot is hardly relaxing with her next to me. She makes me feel so awake.

"Hi," she says quietly, staring into the water.

We sit in silence, just listening to nature, but I think both of us are waiting for the other to do something.

I take a deep breath and turn towards her. "I'm sorry."

"For what? Ignoring me or kissing me or both?" She spits out vehemently, full of sudden spite. My eyes get wide and I stumble over my words. I feel terrible.

"Look, Tris, I feel terrible. I…agh," I let out a frustrated growl, "I lost my control. I'm sorry, and I felt really awkward about it so I didn't want to bother you," I say, and it might just be the most honest thing I've said in a while. I tend to keep my feelings bottled up, but something about her makes me want to open up. She clouds my judgement.

"So you're saying it was a mistake to kiss me?" She asks with more venom than before, boring holes into my eyes with her stare.

"No, that's not what I mean, I guess. I mean, I wanted to kiss you, but I…shouldn't have," I finish lamely. I put my feelings out in the open, partially, and I feel gutted and exposed.

Her expression softens, "Why did you assume it was a big mistake before considering that maybe I wanted to kiss you too?" she asks quietly, her cheeks turning red.

"I, uh. I don't know."

I look over at her, and she's staring at me with a look in her eyes I bet she's seen mirrored in mine when I thought I was good at hiding it. My eyes trace her face, her nose, her chin, her lips…

She scoots closer to me on the rock, and our hands line up. Our faces are only inches apart and still it's not close enough.

"Beautiful," I murmur, my hand reaching up and stroking her cheek. "You're so beautiful."

I lean in and capture her lips with mine. We move in sync, and she tastes like strawberries and I can't get enough. I realize that I was dumb for trying to keep myself away from her, letting my insecurities get in the way of logical thought. The feelings I feel when I touch her are amazing, and I want to feel that every day.

I pull away first, and she pulls away smiling shyly at me, her cheeks and neck flushed. _Beautiful._

I pull her to me, and we sit with her back against my chest, looking out into the water. The beautiful scenery, the tranquil sounds of nature, Tris being in my arms – everything is perfect.

"Four-" she breaks the silence.

"Tobias," I correct her. She shifts around in my arms to face me, a perplexed look on her face. "My real name," I explain.

She smiles, "Tobias. It fits you," I feel warm inside hearing her say my name.

"Just, only say it when we're alone, please?" I request, wanting to keep my real identity a secret.

"Of course, _Tobias._"

We eventually stand and start to walk back through the trail. Tris looks pensive as we stroll, and she furrows her brow in thought. "Tobias?"

I hum in response, looking down at where she's now looking at me.

"What is this…thing?" she asks somewhat shyly.

I think for a moment before responding. Would she agree to be my girlfriend? "Do you…want to go out with me?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, good," I say with relief.

"Did you think I would say no?"

"Maybe, I wasn't sure. But now I get to kiss you all I want," I say, stopping her from walking and putting my hands on her waist.

We kiss again, surrounded by the trees and the birds. When we pull away, I put my forehead against hers. "We have to keep this a secret, you know."

"Why? Are you embarrassed to be with me?" She pulls away.

"No! No, no, not at all, Tris. But if Max finds out then we won't be able to work together, in pairs. And I can't imagine being away from you," I reassure her. I can't believe she would think for a second that I wouldn't want her…I feel like the luckiest guy alive.

"Oh, right. So, we have to act like nothing happened," she says. We walk a little further until we get to the end of the trail. I kiss her hand and let it go, and we walk out together, this time at an appropriate distance from each other.

I can hardly keep the shit eating grin off my face, but I bite the inside of my cheek to look normal, hopefully.

When we near main camp, Tris puts her arm on mine. "I'll go first, that way they won't get suspicious."

I nod, and give her a quick peck on the lips, after making sure nobody is around. She smiles and waves, and hurries off. Her hair cascades down her slim shoulders, and bounces as she walks, reaching the middle of her back. I want to run my hands through it.

I wait about five minutes, then casually walk over to where everyone is still hanging out on the porch. Dinner will be in a few minutes, and the smell of pizza wafts out from the windows and the cracked open door.

Tris is seated on the far side, next to Christina, and she gives me a blank glance as I sit down on the other end next to Zeke.

"There he is! How was your nature time?" He kids, making Shauna laugh lightly.

"It was relaxing, thank you. And if you keep acting like this I might just spend the whole week out there."

We banter for a little while more, before the cooks open up the doors to the dining hall. We all scramble in, everyone trying to get to the delicious pizza first. Most of us sit at the same table, with the exception of a few older counselors who don't like to socialize with us younger ones.

Tris sits across from me, not on purpose, but Chris pushes her down to make room for Will. She gives me a small smile, and I give her one in return. I ache to touch her.

We eat loudly and happily, everyone pretty much is in a good mood. Max waltzes in, and gets our attention. "Welcome back for week 2! They'll be arriving bright and early tomorrow, so I suggest right after dinner you pair up and go to where you'll be staying. Go over the schedule, check the lean-tos, you know the deal. Tomorrow, everyone will be doing the same check in jobs that they did on the first week. Got it?" We all nod. "Good luck!" He goes up to the counter to get some food then retreats to his office.

We finish eating and get into pairs, and Tris and I meet up outside to look at our schedule and information. I didn't look at any of it, really, after I saw her name.

We only have 9 kids this time, which is good. We're staying at Sun's Peak, with Zeke and Christina's group sleeping in the adjacent campground. So that should be fun, but restricting for Tris and I. We have to be careful.

Chris and Zeke's campsite is connected to ours by a short trail, so we'll most likely be spending a lot of time together while we're up at camp.

The four of us all walk together to the site, and Tris walks in front of Zeke and I alongside Christina. "So, did you two make up? Or should I say make out?" Zeke wiggles his eyebrows and whispers to me.

I slap him on the shoulder, hard. "No, we did not make out, yes we did make up," I lie. "I don't want to discuss it."

"Ouch, you got rejected? Sorry bro," he sympathises. I let him think that.

Finally we get to the first campsite, which is Zeke's. "See you guys in the morning?" Christina questions right before we split up.

"Yeah, we'll walk down together. Good night!" Tris says, and we walk away, quickly. The sooner we're out of sight the sooner I can kiss her. We turn the corner and walk a few more steps, to be safe, and I grab her hand and push her up against a tree trunk.

She lets out a giggle against my lips, and puts her hands around my neck. I decide that we're still being too risky, so I scoop her up in my arms and take her to the campsite. It's smaller than our last one, with only four lean-tos all together, so only three for campers. It'll fit us just fine.

I kiss her slowly and set her down right in front of our lean-to. She sets her stuff on the bed all the way to the right, and I set mine down on the one on the left, leaving one bed in between us like last time.

I want nothing more than to push our beds together and to sleep curled around her, but that's way too obvious. So we keep to our old routine.

We check over the campsite and clean up some junk in the lean-tos and before we know it it's getting dark.

I turn around while she gets into her pajamas, and she does the same for me, although this time I have a harder time restraining from turning around.

We lay down after a few more kisses and I hang up my mosquito net.

"Good night, Tobias," she says sleepily.

I smile, "Good night, beautiful."

* * *

**A/N: **Hope you enjoyed it! I'm not too happy with how it turned out, I think it's a bit unrealistic but I wanted to get it up for you guys. Hey, it's actually the afternoon (kinda)! Please leave a review with your thoughts! See you Monday :)


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: **So I'm home sick today…naturally I get sick and miss most of homecoming weekend. I hate to say it but I spent most of my day playing sims, but I finally got off my butt and wrote this! Enjoy :)

* * *

**Chapter 15**

**Monday, July 6**

_**Tris**_

After breakfast we still have a few hours until the campers arrive, so Tobias and I decide to take advantage of the empty showers and wash up. We hike back up to our campsite, which is closer to main camp than last week's, thankfully, and grab our stuff.

Apart from the occasional kiss or holding hands our relationship isn't that different. Tobias's mood seems to have improved, and he's more open to me. We walk down a trail - that's easily wide enough for three - and we walk right next to each other, grabbing hands when we're sure nobody's around. So far, we've been careful to keep our relationship a secret but as time goes on I worry about how that will hold up.

I'm still in shock, because I was so sure he didn't like me and that nobody ever would but I'm certainly glad to have him in my life right now.

As we get closer to the showers, Tobias reminds me about how they work, "So the water runs for 10 minutes before it turns ice cold; it's in your best interest to get out before then."

"Is it hot water? I can't remember," I ask him. I remember the showers being somewhat old and rusty but I don't remember much from when I was a camper here.

He chuckles, "Well it's lukewarm, but it's fine. The pressure's often off so it might be really hard or really soft on your back."

We approach the old building, nestled in a path off the woods, and it looks like I remember it. Since we were in water so much last week, we didn't have any allotted shower time which is disgusting but the kids didn't seem to care. I can't wait to be clean.

There's a boy's side and a girl's side during camp hours, but off hours only a few showers run, all of them on the guy's side. We leave our bags on the shaded benches outside and head in, flip flops squeaking on the tiled floor. We're instructed to keep shoes on, for good reason.

He knows which showers will be on and points me into one, and he goes into the adjacent. They're only separated by a thin wall and curtains in front. I can see his feet since the wall separation doesn't go all the way down, and the top of his head since he's so tall. I get out my soaps and wash cloths and strip down, putting my clothes on the little shelf near the door that is too far away from the water to get wet.

I turn on my water and jump back, letting out an involuntary squeal. It's _freezing._ "Tobias! I thought you said it was somewhat warm?" I shout, my voice echoing through the small room as I shy away from the cold water best I can.

He laughs deeply from beside me, "It should get warmer in a few moments." I wait a minute, and it doesn't.

"It's still freezing cold!" I say, my teeth almost chattering, shivers going down my back.

"Okay, well mine's warm if you want to switch," Tobias suggests over the roar of the showers.

"You don't mind?"

"No, I'm used to it. Okay, so just get all your stuff and tell me when you're ready, hurry because soon it'll get cold for real." I follow his instructions and get all my soap, putting my towel around my body best I can, and after drying my hands I grab my clothes.

"Okay!" I shout to him.

He opens the curtain and I open mine, and I almost choke on my spit when I see him before me. He's _really_ muscular, more than I had imagined from what I saw underneath his shirts. He smirks and looks me up and down, making my cheeks get warm. "Wouldn't want it to get cold, would we?" he says, his voice deeper than usual. I collect myself and move past him, still blushing, and set up in his shower.

I clean myself quickly, and so does Tobias. Even though all it would take to see me naked is to stand on tip toe, he's a gentleman and he doesn't try to look. He plays footsie a few times, though, nudging me with his flip flop through the dividers.

I finish washing off and just let the water run through my hair and down my back, relishing in the way it feels. A drop of cold water stings my cheek and I hurry to turn it off. I get dressed into my camp shirt and shorts after drying off, and I put my towel in my hair before putting it into a messy bun.

We emerge at the same time, and I almost run into him before he stops me with his arms. His hand moves to my chin and he tilts it up, and his lips meet mine.

He pulls away and smiles, resting his forehead on mine. "We should get going," I murmur. He grunts and then takes my hand and leads me back to our campsite to put our shower stuff away.

* * *

We make it to main camp just in time for check in. Tobias's doing gate duty again with Zeke, and he gives my hand a discreet squeeze before getting in the golf cart and driving up. I get my green flag and stand next to Christina, since we're both living in the same area, it'll be easier for the luggage people to bring it up in one run.

"Being home was so nice, I can't believe I have to do this again – all summer, to make it worse!" Christina complains, dropping her clipboard and flag and sitting down on the grass in defeat.

"Chris, come on, it's not so bad," I try to console her. The first kids and parents start trickling in, and I yank her off the ground and try to put a smile on her face. "Think of all the clothes you can buy with this money when we go home this weekend," I try to coax her.

Her face brightens, "You'll go to the mall?"

"I don't – okay, I'll go for a _few hours_ on Saturday. If you cheer up," I give in, knowing fighting against her and fashion is useless.

"Yay, perfect! Thanks Tris."

"Yeah, yeah," I say, ending our conversation as the first camper comes over.

"Is this Wilderness Explorer?" The girl, about ten years old, asks.

"Yup, you've got it! I'm Tris, what's your name?" I ask her sweetly, getting out my list of names in my clipboard. We only have nine this week, thankfully.

"I'm Rosie," she tells me. I scan the list and find her name and check it off.

"Okay, Rosie, you're all set. You can set your bags down right here," I gesture towards a patch of grass near me, "And just hang for a bit before we start eating lunch."

She smiles and nods, and walks over to her mom who is standing a bit farther away. They converse for a bit before hugging and going separate ways.

The rest of the check in goes fairly well, with only a few kids scared to be away from parents and no sign up mishaps. Next to me, Christina's trying to comfort a sobbing boy who's staying here for his first time and is terrified. Some of my campers are teary eyed, but not that bad.

We take them in for lunch once they've all arrived, and Four returns shortly after we start eating. Once he sits down I can go up to the salad bar, and I get myself a small salad and sit back down. He puts his hand on my knee under the table, rubbing it soothingly and I smile to myself. "How did it go?" he asks quietly.

"Good. Not many cried, and the few that did calmed down quickly," I tell him while pouring some lemonade from the pitcher.

"That's good to hear. Well, after this we have the swim test again. I can do it this time," he says.

"Okay," I nod and continue eating. We go up to the beach with Christina's group; since we're staying together we do stuff like this together.

Four and Zeke go out to help the lifeguards, and Christina and I keep track of the kids back on shore. Zeke takes off his shirt while Four keeps his on, and Chris nudges me in the shoulder.

"Hey, at least we'll have a good view. Why doesn't hottie there take off his shirt?"

I gape at her, "Chris, for the last time, you have a boyfriend! And you think I'd know?"

"Yeah, you two seem to be pretty…_close_," she says suggestively.

I roll my eyes and turn to the side. "Okay, everyone I need you all to get into groups of five," I tell the campers. They do as I say, and we start leading them into the water one group at a time.

Everybody does really well, and after they've all changed we go up to our lean-to's to help them get set up. "Meet in the middle when you're done, no lolly gagging," Tobias tells them, and we go sit in the gazebo together.

He looks around quickly and pecks me on the lips, and I swat his arm. "The campers are right there!" I hiss.

He smirks, "I made sure they didn't see us. I couldn't help myself."

Everyone gathers after about fifteen minutes, and we all spread out at the picnic tables, arranging in a big circle for a warm up game Tobias told us to play.

"Okay, so this is a way for everyone to get to know each other's names. You say an adjective that starts with the same letter as your first name, and we go around the circle saying them," he explains, "For example, I would be 'Fabulous Four.'" Everyone laughs, and he smiles widely. "Alright, now to my left, you start."

"I'm Clever Cate," a girl with glasses and frizzy hair starts.

"Magnificent Michael."

"Trusty Trevor."

"I'm Terrific Tris," I say for my turn. The rest of the kids all say theirs and then Tobias brings out a small ball and explains that we have to throw it to anyone we want, but we have to say their silly name.

He smirks and throws it my way, "Terrific Tris!"

I catch it, barely, and quickly throw it to 'Silly Samantha.'

We play for a few rounds, until we all feel confident in each other's names.

The rest of the evening is uneventful, Tobias and I don't have a chance to show any affection and dinner is the usual first day hamburgers and hot dogs. The show we do in the Pit is mostly the same, but at the end they call for each pair to do a 'duet.'

"Four, what are we gonna do?" I pace back and forth, dreading the impending embarrassment.

"Relax, you have a great voice. Do you wanna do Donut Shop?" Tobias puts a hand on my shoulder.

"That's like, the shortest one."

He smirks, "I know."

"Okay then. I think I remember the lyrics, but let me check-" I go to look for the book but am cut off by Max ushering us on stage. This will not be good.

We face the crowd of adolescents and stand awkwardly in the middle of the stage. Four announces that we'll be 'performing' Donut Shop, and he counts off from eight.

"Oh, I ran around the corner and I ran around the block and I ran right into a donut shop! Well, I picked up a donut and I wiped off the grease and I handed the lady a five cent piece," we sing, at a moderate pace. This is one of those songs that can be increased to crazy speeds, but we take it nice and slow. Four has a nice voice, and we sound okay singing together on different octaves. "Well, she looked at the money and she looked at me and she said this money isn't good you see! There's a hole in the middle and it goes _right_ through. I said lady there's a hole in the donut too. Thanks for the donut, toodle-oo." Some kids laugh and others applaud lightly, but Zeke in the back – who already sang an embarrassingly off-key Pirate Ship song – starts chanting.

"Fas-ter! Fas-ter! Fas-ter!" Soon the whole stadium joins in with him, and Tobias looks at me and shrugs. We do it a little faster this time, only to be met with the same chant.

We end up going so fast you can't even understand what we're saying and everyone is laughing. Max finally convinces them to let us go, and we exit the stage quickly, taking a seat in the audience. "Well that really backfired, Four!" I whisper harshly once we sit down.

He just laughs, "Ah, it was hilarious! But next week we'll plan it out, okay?"

I sigh, "Okay."

* * *

**A/N:** I'm sorry this is short (not feeling too well) and kinda a filler, big action coming up next chapter. Can we get to 300 follows, 300 reviews and _maybe_ 200 favorites? I love you guys, thank you for reading! Please tell me your honest thoughts in the box below.


End file.
